Avengers: The Impossible Child
by Black' Victor Cachat
Summary: No OC focus. A baby appears after A:AoU, who is somehow the child of Bruce and Natasha! Meanwhile, a mysterious party which has been manipulating events for years, prepares to start the Civil War, even while new nightmares appear. Now both parents must fight to save the world from both heroes and villains! Brutasha.
1. Clint Nearly Has A Heart Attack

For better or worse, I do not own any Marvel franchise

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Many thanks to my wonderful Betas, AutumnFroste and theicemenace. Be sure to check out their stories as well!

The fantastic cover image is courtesy of KaydenceRei. Just perfect!

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 **I should emphasize that the "Impossible Child" in this story is not going to be receiving a lot of direct focus and personality development. Not only is the kid too young, but my story focuses primarily upon the Marvel Cinematic Universe cast, not an OC. The child still does appear of course, because it is too adorable :-)**

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' _Babies make everything better_.'

-TvTropes

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Chapter 1: Clint nearly has a Heart Attack, same for Tony

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 **XXX**

Barton Farm

A few weeks after "Age of Ultron"

A prodigal son driven mad by pain. A brotherhood overstrained by secrets. Heroes forced to confront their greatest fears and wondering if they had failed. Family lost. Love twisted into betrayal.

The Avengers had been pushed to the brink, but still they lived, although one of their number had chosen to retire to be with his family while he still could passing on the torch to the next generation while enjoying the reward for his services. Clint Barton, formerly Hawkeye.

The Barton farm lay untouched as the dawn broke over it, the place where the heroes had been brought so that the aches, stress, and emotional scars of their violent lives could be melted and re-forged into a stronger steel. Where those hardened warriors had come to be wrapped in warmth and family love, giving a face to all those they fought and sacrificed for.

The tranquility only broken whenever the children got too much sugar into them…

Laura Barton slowly made her way to the front door as part of her daily routine of waiting for the newspaper while enjoying the sunrise. Baby Nathaniel was still asleep, as was Clint who was trying to do the lion's share of looking after their newest son. It was possibly guilt over being away so often, facing off against world shattering threats, but Laura was not one to complain. As it was, she was still getting over her recent childbirth, and enjoyed taking it easy. Opening the door, something caught her attention, and her jaw dropped in disbelief.

Clint Barton was awake even before his wife reached their bedroom, her quick, quiet footsteps ringing silent alarms that had been beaten into him. Already half out of bed, he started to reach for a bow concealed behind a false panel once he saw the expression on her face. A quick shake of her head calmed him down, and Laura gestured him to follow. A moment later, he was staring in disbelief at something that had been moved on top of their kitchen table: a baby.

About six months old, wrapped up in green and red blankets, and adorably sleeping in a little baby carrier. Beside him/her was a small, portable cooler that had apparently been opened, revealing a dozen jars of baby formula. A bag on the ground had an equal number of diapers. _Whoever left this must have thought we had whatever else was needed, or has absolutely no idea how to properly care for a baby_ , Clint numbly concluded. _No clothes despite autumn approaching, or any toys, I don't even see a pacifier, bib, shampoo, baby wash, powder, lotion, and if anyone thinks that's enough diapers for even a few days they need a wake-up call_. Ergo, while Clint was concerned on many levels, his paternal side was happy the kid was now in the care of a responsible adult.

There was also an open envelope on the table that had not been there last night, with a piece of paper lying at an angle that he could not read it. Worse, the way Laura kept glancing at it was ominous.

"Huh?" was his eloquent response to the scene.

"I woke up, went outside, and just found her there."

 _"_ _Her?" Alright, one thing at a time_. He turned back to his wife, "Anything else you noticed?"

"No," and then she visibly composed herself, "Clint? The note. Read it."

Slowly, the ex-Avenger walked over, and paused to assess the baby. It, she, was sleeping soundly, and when he put on a nearby glove and felt its forehead, the infant was comfortably warm. So she had not been outside long. Still wary of touching this mystery directly after all the weirdness he had experienced in his life, he glanced at the envelope, but saw nothing noteworthy, and leaned over to read the piece of paper.

A major concern was not just that a _baby_ of all things had turned up on their doorstep, but also that it physically should have been impossible. Life as a SHIELD agent had given Clint more than a share of professional paranoia when it came to protecting his home and family. Especially given how much of his former job involved bypassing the security systems of other people to commit unfriendly acts. Consequently, while secrecy was the farm's main defense, there were plenty of passive detectors, carefully placed animal traps, and other things the children were taught to stay well away from, to keep anyone from approaching the house.

Natasha always made a point of checking that everything was secure whenever she visited, and would offer new suggestions every time. When Nick Fury had been hiding here, the man had spent a lot of his time improving this even more.

There should have been more than enough forewarning about anyone approaching the house, with Clint waiting to greet whomever had dropped the baby off. Like the time when the regular newspaper boy had been sick, and Clint had been watching his replacement hidden in the trees with a drawn bow. Also, the baby was still warm, so it had not happened to long ago.

He read the paper once, twice, and on the third attempt his brow was uncharacteristically furrowed, and wondering if this was some sick joke.

"Dad?"

He turned to see his oldest child, Cooper, looking up at him with sleepy eyes, "What's going on Dad?"

Fortunately, Laura had seen their son entering the room beforehand, and was quick to answer while Clint struggled to keep up. "Someone dropped a baby off at our door, and we're trying to figure out what to do."

"I know what to do," Clint corrected grimly. "I need to make a trip, we need to get to the bottom of this, now!" Realizing what his tone must have sounded like, he quickly schooled his features into a light smile, and crouched down to look his son in the eye, "Don't worry, I'll be back home soon. I just have to go pay a trip to Tony Stark, you know, Iron Man. I'm not going off to do anything dangerous. I'll be just an errand boy for all this. Okay?"

While still a little dopey and confused, Cooper nodded in agreement. As for Laura, she conceded that Clint had the right idea, and headed off to get him a meal to eat first, and other stuff he would need for the trip ahead of him.

Pausing, she turned back to Clint, "Give Aunty Nat our love," she said quietly.

 **XXX**

Later that afternoon

Stark Tower

Tony was there to meet Barton and his unexpected charge in a baby carrier, when they arrived at what was once again called the Stark Tower. The phone call the multi-billionaire had received, well away from the man's farm, had been unexpected and confusing. Legolas was claiming he needed emergency transportation to Stark and his labs, to check out a baby that had been found. In fact, he was bringing the baby along with him.

Suffice to say, Tony was intrigued enough to take some time away from his work. After the debacle where his response to facing his worst nightmare was to create one of the greatest threats to humanity ever, he had been trying to reprioritize his life. Safer tasks like working to make to replace Big Oil with his environmentally free arc reactors for providing people with energy. Along with a few dozen other projects here and there.

After a quick handshake in greeting, Tony led his former teammate to an elevator, while his newest AI, FRIDAY, did a security scan of the three of them. During the ride up, he decided to break the ice a bit.

Remembering how secretive Barton had been about his family, Tony opened up with a smirk and a friendly verbal jab at the man, "And you said you didn't have a girlfriend, you sly dog!"

"Nah, not that type of guy. Just found her. But someone was taking care of her beforehand, kid's got to be like six months old, give or take."

 _So definitely not Barton's third kid born extra early. Still, what would bring him all the way here?_ Tony wondered. _He hid his family to keep them safe, but being seen with a baby makes it, her, vulnerable to the same threats he was worried about. It might even clue in other people to the possibility of his real family. So what shook him up so much to take that kind of risk?_ Meanwhile, the billionaire automatically continued the conversation without losing a beat, "I'll leave that kind of guess to you. I take my inexperience with unexpected noisy, smelly kids as a matter of pride."

"So," Clint casually led as he changed the subject, "heard anything from Thor?"

"No, he's still off hunting down about those Infinity Stone thingies."

"What about Bruce?"

Tony shot him a knowing glance at that. "No, my Science Bro is still of the radar, and I'm not doing anything about that. Unless you're asking on Romanoff's behalf?"

Something flashed across Clint's face, but he shook his head. "No, she hasn't talked to me about, well, _them_. And you know she would have broken in herself if she thought you had anything and she wanted it."

"Possibly. Tower's even tighter after all the times Fury and Coulson just walked in however."

"Believe what you want. Is Pepper here?"

"Uhm, no," Tony awkwardly coughed, but did not elaborate at Clint's curious look. Truthfully, seeing the secret Barton family and realizing that the arguably weakest member of the Avengers was also the most emotionally healthy, and _why_ , had also helped Tony reprioritize his life. He was spending even more time with Pepper these days, but right now she was ironically out on a business trip while Tony had remained behind to finalize a time sensitive project that he had let get out of hand.

They continued the light conversation and banter until they reached their destination, with the inventor calmly navigating the lab to hand the archer a swab. Tony was hardly an expert like Bruce Banner or Helen Cho, but he had spent enough nights boning up on bio-chemistry and such, especially when Pepper was suffering from Extremis. This should not take long for someone of his skills or resources. Barton quickly ran the cloth through the baby's mouth, who was both awake and strangely calm to Tony's mind, and then the father of three handed the sample to the scientist. The specimen was then promptly placed into the medical machine to be studied in ways unknown to all but the most advanced biology labs, and Tony waltzed forward to hear the results.

"Alright, FRIDAY," Tony called out, his customary dramatics back into play, "why don't you bedazzle Legolas with what you've got?"

"Yes Boss, working on it," the A.I. responded. Tony blinked in surprise; a simple DNA analysis should have been done already, given the sophistication of the machinery and software. By saying that she was still working at it, FRIDAY was telling him that this problem might be more interesting than he first thought.

"Okay, tell me what you've got so far."

"The child's mother has been identified as Ms. Natasha Romanoff."

Tony froze in place at this bombshell, and turned to look back at Barton and the baby. His instinctive response was to snark that the kid was too young to be Romanoff's, that she had been living at the tower long enough for him to have noticed if she put on a bunch of pounds. True, there were alternatives, but something in Barton's face told him there was a lot more going on. And the man knew her a lot better than Tony did, and he would _never_ have pegged her as the maternal type.

Noting Barton's lack of response to his silent invitation to contribute more to the situation, Tony sat down at the nearest computer, "Show me the other half. Uhhuh, yeah, standard stuff it seems. Just a regular guy. What's the big deal? Can't find a match in any system?"

"Yes and no," the female voice answered back, "here, sir."

Tony just blinked in further confusion at what was on the screen. It was a simulation he remembered glancing at a while back, a hypothetical model that FRIDAY had pulled out of his files. But that was for what the DNA should have looked like before it had been altered, for…

Tony snapped his chair around to stare at the baby, for the first taking her brown hair and familiar green eyes, before looking Barton right in the eyes, "Alright, what aren't you telling me?" he demanded.

"You go first," the man shot back automatically, starring over Tony's shoulder to look at the screen, reading what he could of the file. Then he nodded, and pulled out of his pocket a folded piece of paper. It was a little wrinkly, and could have come from any printer on earth, with only a few words printed on it. A name:

Laura Fury Romanoff-Banner.

 **XXX**

 **Author Notes:**

 **Special thanks to CloudCuckooLandHasAQueen, for going over my writing beforehand!**

 **Trying to think up baby names is difficult. Trying to figure out what fictional characters would call their kid is just annoying.**

 **I was never really a fan of Hawkeye until Age of Ultron, and now I am. Consequently, he is taking on a bit of a bigger role in this story.**

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 **Recommended Brutasha fics that really helped inspire me:**

 **"A Product of the Red Room," by CloudCuckooLandHasAQueen**

 **"Fever Dreams," by nothinbuttherain**

 **"So what? We just disappear?" byWildjump**

 **"Dear Natasha," by Alisme**

 **"One of Those Nights," by** **RevolverKiss**

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 **Next Chapter: 'With the Avengers'**

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 **Writing a fic based upon a movie you have only seen once (when I started this), and relying upon the memories of other people and what they have written online, is painful. So please ease it with reviews, and I will get back to you!**


	2. With the Avengers

For better or worse, I do not own any Marvel franchise.

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 **Slight spoilers for near the end of season 1 of Agents of SHIELD**

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Chapter 2: With the Avengers

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Avengers HQ

Captain Steve Rogers looked up from his morning newspaper at the sound of an irritated young woman's voice, "Do we really have to do this nonsense?"

"Do you mean the talk later today with Maria Hill about public relations?"

Sighing at her glaring nod, Steve beckoned for Wanda Maximoff, a.k.a. the Scarlet Witch, and Vision, who had been with her a lot lately, to join him at the breakfast table.

"Alright, I get why you're upset about being asked to act like dancing monkeys, I really do."

She took the invitation readily, "'Dancing monkeys?'"

"It's how I referred to myself back during the war, back when I all I was doing to help was go around in a fancy uniform for propaganda. I went on stage a lot, but never fought, despite what all the comics and movies said. Mostly I worked to boost the sale of war bonds, and promote America fighting in the war. It wasn't until 1943 I actually I had my first real battle, and even then I went in against orders." Noting her surprised look, he added, "Yeah. That tends to get glossed over in the history books a little."

"Then why do you feel we have to do it? Surely our time between missions would be better used for further combat training?" Vision asked calmly, his curious expression making it clear he meant no offense. Of course, none of their missions thus far had been on the same scale as Ultron. Mostly they had just going after organized crime groups that had enough weaponry to be too dangerous for average SHIELD teams.

"Because of how the world is looking at us. In just a few short years, everyone's been thrown a lot of things that they are still trying to get used to. Loki and Asgard, the Chitauri invasion, the Mandarin, HYDRA, and now Ultron. Too many people are confused about what this all means, and are afraid."

Vision cocked his head and bluntly stated, "You and SHIELD are worried that instead of the majority calmly reconsidering the workings of their societies and their place in the universe, there will be a panicked response. And you are therefore working to alleviate this." Truthfully, Vision was also expecting the former, and the inevitable consequences for this world. Still, he would stay with the newest generation of Avengers and help them the best he could. Their efforts held the best hope for prolonging humanity's existence, and possibly providing some unforeseen variable that might tip the odds in their favour.

It was funny really: Steve and the rest of the Avengers knew _what_ Ultron was trying to do, yet spent little time wondering about _why_. Why he had felt the need to speed up humanity's evolution, what had motivated him into believing such drastic, irrevocable steps were a necessary, until his pain drove him to madness. They had never wondered what Ultron, and thus Vision, had learned from the Mind Stone.

As for herself, Wanda was feeling uncomfortable now. While her role in it was classified, she was all too well aware of the consequences of her helping Ultron, and the world learning of an invasion of robots, and how the whole world was nearly killed by a falling city. She also knew how many people were still coming to grips with an alien invasion and living myths. When she had heard about the Mandarin, she had initially taken it as another example of American corruption. She had just assumed that Tony Stark was merely trying to dispose of a competitor, who also had the then-Vice-President as an accomplice. Like many others worldwide, she had believed that Iron Man was just working to maintain the status quo by preventing a rival from controlling the America's nuclear arsenal. After all, the Avengers were only the newest agents of American domination. For everyone else, they were concerned about how close a terrorist had come to controlling the nuclear codes. She blinked, and snapped her attention back as she heard Vision continue.

"And yet from what I understand, your decision to download both SHIELD and HYDRA's files onto the web has only worsened the decision. The revelation that the most advanced global intelligence network had been secretly working for a Nazis cult. And no, I know they weren't that anymore, but a rogue Nazis division that even Hitler feared _is_ how most people understand HYDRA. That alone would have caused panic, but knowing how close they were to actually succeeding in conquering the world. Governments all around the globe have been arresting SHIELD agents after learning what the consequences of letting them have free reign are. They will not readily support the reformation of SHIELD, or the creation of an independent team of superheroes."

"I know, but I still had to do it. To help encourage everyone to be more politically active, to think about things, and speak out more. To prevent the kind of world HYDRA had been working to build. A society ruled by fear and force, all for _the greater good_." The last part was just dripping with sarcasm. "As for the governments, they may try to take control of us, but stopping Ultron reassured people enough to give us the time we need."

"Even though it may still lead to repercussions for you and your friends?"

"I wouldn't do anything differently a second time around. I don't really want you guys to act like dancing monkeys, but I do want you to be more than just fighters. To be also role models. So that when people look at us, it won't be with fear." And then he gave an awkward pause, and gave Wanda a sad look, "Like they're afraid of Bruce."

Flushing, Wanda looked down in shame, realizing just how much of the very drills she had earlier believed to be useless, were in fact a consequence of her actions. Feeling her cheeks returning to normal a little, she looked back up, "But didn't everyone already see him as a monster?"

"Yes, but only because they didn't have all the facts. And even now that all the details are available online, not enough people are reading them. Or if they are, they are only using it to reinforce their own biases and conclusions. Every rampage by the Hulk destroyed massive amounts of property, terrorized people, and lots of injuries. But nothing too serious, and no deaths. Not until he fought the Chitauri in New York. And not until South Africa."

Wanda was now just staring in disbelief now, "What!? How could-!? I've seen the news reports on his attacks! How could he cause that all that destruction without killing anybody!?"

Steve just stared impassively back at her, until his attention was diverted to Vision speaking up. "He's correct. I have just re-accessed all reports on the Hulk. Johannesburg was by far the worst attack in a civilian area, with far greater collateral damage, and far more indiscriminate injuries. I would hazard it is only thanks to the distraction posed by the local authorities, and Tony's intervention, that prevented any loss of life. And as we saw while fighting Ultron, the Hulk was perfectly capable of fighting Ultron's bodies without endangering any of the civilians he was fighting to protect."

 _Well, don't I feel wonderful?_ Wanda reflected bitterly. _But that's why I'm here, isn't it? To make up for what I've done, and help people properly?_

Looking back up, she stared right back into Captain America's eyes, "Alright, what do we have to do?"

Smiling with approval, Steve shows them both the front page of his newspaper, it was featuring an article about a new vigilante named Spider-Man. "We have to approach people like him, making sure that he knows what he's doing, that he has the help he needs. But more importantly, we have to make sure there is a strong precedent for people with unique abilities on what is acceptable behaviour." No reference was made towards Wanda and her brother, and Vision made no comment, Wanda still heard it even though she knew Steve would never do so.

"We have to make sure there're no further reasons for people to be afraid," he continued in that firm yet captivating voice of his, "to not give them any further reason to try and control our actions. We need to be more than just fighters taking on every new menace.

"The Avengers still work to keep the world safe, but it's important that the public trusts us. Not just for their cooperation, but so that we also know that we deserve it. At the same time, while we're protecting the freedoms of others, we need to keep our own, and to not let public opinion or politicians stop us from doing what's right."

Vision smiled, "A tall order, as we work through conflicting goals. Yet I suppose no one ever said being an Avenger was easy."

A part of Wanda wondered if the artificial man really understood what was being asked of them, what she even now was just beginning to grasp. Captain America, Steve, was asking them to be symbols of what mankind could become and accomplish. The Avengers had to become icons, men and woman who would help guide everyone into a new and better world, without sacrificing their ideals. All of this, while simultaneously taking on any threats to it all.

"And we'll do it," she vowed, upon her love for her dead brother, "we'll make the world a better place, and failing that, we'll know we did our best." After all, as Clint said, it was their job.

With Vision putting in his own support, Steve felt more of his burden lift. He had good people working with him on this, like the two extraordinary individuals in front of him. Speaking of which…he turned his head to see Natasha walking in, and gave a smile in greeting to his second-in-command.

 **XXX**

Natasha's P.O.V.

The Black Widow gave a small smile in return to the three in the kitchen, before heading straight to the coffee maker. She suspected Steve knew she had been listening for a while, hearing him guide the two youths through his plans for the Avengers. The conviction he could channel into his voice was truly awe inspiring. Personally, she approved of Steve's desire for a more professional team, one that hopefully would lack the personal issues the last one had. While saving the world was still the priority, she could appreciate setting iron precedent for what was acceptable behaviour for those with special training, or were enhanced. And to do so, she freely put her trust in the leadership of the most moral man she knew, knowing he would help her continue to do what was right.

She was also happy having people like Wanda, or Steve's friend Sam, on board. They were individuals who were willing to defy authority if their consciences told them to, which would be essential in helping to keep any governments or other agencies from taking control of those with special abilities. Personally, after the KGB and especially HYDRA, she had serious concerns about taking orders from anyone she did not personally know and trust.

With the revelation of HYDRA's secret control over SHIELD, she had learned how little progress she actually made in reforming. If not for Steve pulling her out, she might have stayed lost. When Secretary Alexander Pierce had questioned whether or not she was ready to reveal herself to the world by dumping all of HYDRA and SHIELD's secrets onto the internet, he could not comprehend what a relief it was to her. He had thought she was conflicted about it. Did he really think she had not given it any thought whatsoever? When Fury had been looking for support in opposing Steve's plan to take down both SHIELD and HYRDA, she had not said a word. She had known by then that she could not hide in the shadows any more. Not if she truly wanted to break away from her past.

With the upload, there was no more hiding who she was, no backing out, and finally a chance to make a new life. And with Steve and Clint's support, she had found it with the Avengers. Walking beside them, she knew that she was on the right side.

Now though, life was great overall. Oh, sure, it was a risky, difficult, and dangerous job, but she was used to that. And more importantly, everything she was doing was far easier on her conscience than most things she had done over life. Now if only Bruce were here, if she could actually _talk_ to the dork, she would be perfectly satisfied.

She loved the man, she truly did. Somehow, some way, they were simultaneously opposite people, and yet all too similar. And it had worked for the two of them.

There had been several reasons to first approach Bruce after Loki had been defeated. Overcoming her fear of the Hulk was a big reason of course, although she still feared the Big Guy to an extent, but who did not? Protecting Bruce, to prevent an unplanned Code: Green because the scientist had been shot, was another reason. And she was mildly ashamed that she had in the beginning wondered if she could find a way to control the Hulk. Ashamed, because that was overlooking Bruce as a person, and focusing only upon the power that he both wielded and despised.

Surprisingly, she had found herself enjoying her time with him immensely. He had also appreciated new company after his lonely self-exile, especially since he could tell she was working to no longer be afraid of his darker side. Granted, all of the original Avengers had been outsiders in some way to the rest of humanity, but for her and Bruce it had been especially true. Being with the group had helped fulfil their mutual need to ' _belong_ ' somewhere. They had been with people who made a point of being with them, understanding them, and if necessary, keep them in line. In the end though, it had been the two of them who kept waking up with nightmares, and stayed up late and night just talking with each other. Over time, they started doing it during the daytime too, and soon they had become nearly inseparable.

She had found herself revealing more of who she was to him, trusting him with more of her secrets and had stopped using her vast arsenal of deflections and distractions that kept people from seeing more than the surface of her.

At first glance, they seemed to be polar opposites. He was pacifistic and non-confrontational to the point of seeming like a pushover, while she was an infamous killer who always took the world and everyone in it head on. But it seemed what she liked about him so much was the ways he was so different from her. A dorky, good man, who even when in self-exile had worked to help people. Natasha hated her past and what it contained, and associated with people whose own violent lives constantly reminded her of it. And she was the out-spoken, free living person Bruce dared not be.

Of course, they had never disagreed on the fact that they were both monsters. His was the Hulk, and hers was how casually and effectively she could kill, and had been since she was a child. Moreover, despite whatever reassurances people might have tried to make, they were both well aware that their present lives were the consequences of their own personal choices. No one had forced him to conduct a dangerous experiment upon himself, costing him his future and endangering the world at large. Bruce's greatest relief was how he not killed a single innocent civilian. Of course, he had a tendency to end that with the word, "yet." And she knew that if he ever did, there would be no stopping his suicide attempts until he pulled it off.

As for her, Natasha had never really considered suicide, but knew that her continued living had come with its own price. People liked to lay the blame for her actions on the Red Room, saying that she had been too young, and the people at fault were the ones who had molded her into the ultimate spy. That she was a product of her environment. But that little girl, who had been known as Natalia Romanova, had been too intelligent to delude herself into not seeing how she was choosing to live by deliberately killing innocent people. And all of her crimes that she had committed afterwards had also been made by cold, logical calculation. The all too many good and decent people who had died at her hand, begging for mercy.

There were many reasons she was glad she had left the KGB. Saving bystanders was far easier on her battered and twisted soul than killing them.

Leaving had also led her to Bruce. And the pain she now felt.

Part of it was how he was no longer with them, with her. Unable to talk and let everything they both felt out. Yet a very strong part of this wrenching feeling was also guilt.

She did not feel guilty about pushing him off the cliff, for she felt she had been doing him a favour, but that she had been so unaware of what he was feeling. Back in Sokovia, when he had wanted to run away and leave the others to handle Ultron on their own, she had finally realized the true extent to which Wanda had unhinged him. Natasha's time in with Bruce at the Barton's farm had helped her start purging her own demons, and she had managed to finish it during her free time in Ultron's cell. But it had been enough to distract her from seeing the full extent to which Bruce was still suffering from his own experience.

For the first time, Bruce had been willing to run when innocents were endangered and he could have helped, when their friends, the closest people they had to family, were fighting a menace more dangerous than anything they had ever known. His self-loathing and fear had pushed him to the point that he believed the Hulk would only make things worse, and that running was the only thing he could think about, besides being with her. Claiming that he could not fight around civilians. And for an ever so brief moment, Natasha had failed to recognize him.

Kissing Bruce, telling she adored him, and then pushing him off the cliff to unleash his monster, had not just been to save the world, but also to save him. From something that would have haunted the dork forever when he realized what he had done. Worse, if they had failed, he might have become the last surviving human on earth.

That was why after the Hulk and her had gotten on top of the flying city, that she had told him to go be a hero.

It was not until afterwards that she realized how Bruce must have seen it, when the Hulk had turned off the communicator, stopping the Lullaby, shutting her out. Tony theorized that the Hulk was Bruce's most innermost nature. That the Hulk's rampages were his rage, and need to survive personified. So what did it mean when the Big Guy was helping Bruce to run?

 _For now, I need to give him some time. If the_ Hulk _of all people wants to be left alone, then I will respect that. I'll give him (or is it both of them?) time to think on what happened in Sokovia. And he needs to figure it out on his own without me in his face. He does know me, and he'll figure out why I did what I did. But if I don't hear from him by a certain point, then I'll go after him._

 _"I need to give him time to himself to deal with what Wanda did to him, but not too much time alone. Otherwise, he'll sink back to the same levels of self-loathing as before. And he may need some more help fully exorcising his nightmare._

 _Also, I can't just leave Steve hanging. I'll go when I see that the Avengers are ready enough that they can handle things without me for a while. Or forever, if I do end up running with Bruce._

 _…Would it be for the rest of our lives? ...It could be, if whatever I'm doing is something that'll help wipe out the red in my ledger._ And then she let a secret little smile slip out. _Although keeping a traveling doctor safe would be a good start!_

Unfortunately, she knew that in the end she would probably have to be the one to take the initiative. Of the two of them, she was the one most likely to take charge and get things moving. But for now, she felt free to procrastinate, unwilling to risk discovering whatever happiness she had imagined possible between her and Bruce was unreachable. That the two of them could never have some small piece of a normal life. Or worse, that she had ruined everything.

And before she left, she would have to confront Wanda about what she had shown Bruce, his deepest, most carefully hidden nightmare that had driven him so far off the edge. Natasha was afraid she knew what it was, but she was confident she could handle it. Assuming of course that Bruce was willing to listen, and that her forceful changing of him into the Hulk had not actually confirmed his worst fears.

So she kept her smirk in place, and joined in the banter while snagging some of the food off Steve's plate. "Hope you guys got a good rest, because we'll be training in twenty."

"But we're just eating breakfast!"

"Good! Gives you something to fight through!"

 **XXX**

Gaining access to Avengers Facility was a little more difficult than usual for Clint and Tony. Primarily because they both agreed that they had to keep the baby a secret, and shoving her into a box to hide her was detrimental to _their_ health. Fortunately, when they called ahead to Dr. Helen Cho, she agreed to meet them for picking up a "biological research sample" they had brought. Consequently, Clint was rocking the baby while sharing a large box with her and some special tech Tony kept around for such occasions, and they quickly passed through security. Although Tony did have to promise the female scientist to let the active Avengers know what was happening.

Wary of another confrontation, Iron Man walked off to find the Avengers, and was a little surprised to see them doing some sparring matches. With the original team, they had never really taken the time to do stuff like this.

Rodney was busy squaring off against Sam Wilson, the Falcon, with the former showing he had more combat experience than most might expect from the former liaison to Stark Industries.

'Cap!' he called out, which made Steve turn around in surprise. "Legolas and I are here to see Dr. Cho. And I am going to ask you to leave us alone be for a bit." Quickly raising his hands, and putting on as serious a face as possible, Tony kept his eyes locked on the super-soldier, "We're here to confirm something, and if it's nothing, we'll let you know. But if it is nothing and we tell you now, some people will be very upset if it's proven wrong. False hope and all. 'Sides, those other two are responsible enough for you, right?"

Steve stared back grimly, and nodded, while Natasha walked over with a smirk, "Nice to see you too, Tony! We're fine, hope you're doing good too! What've you been up?"

The two team leaders were surprised and worried at the brief hesitation Tony showed, but he quickly rallied with a small smirk, "Sorry. Hi guys, how're you doing? Me? Oh, you know, living the high life. And now, if you'll excuse me, Barton and Dr. Cho are hopefully already done."

On the way out, Tony encountered the Scarlet Witch, with whom he only exchanged a nod, before he continued on his way. Their first real civil discussion, after Ultron had been defeated, had been a bit strained, but they had made peace with each other. The two of them had begun to forge a tentatively respectful relationship while battling Stark's 'son' together had helped, but what had made their new relationship possible had been when Wanda learned how much he himself hated the Stark Industries' weapons legacy.

Nothing else of note happened for about half an hour, until Tony hurried back into the gym. Walking up to the sparing matches, he was glad to see it was now Black Widow versus Captain America. The fact that the Capsicle currently had her pinned showed how the man was getting increasingly dangerous as he sparred with her, learning more and more exotic combat moves. Using the distraction as she worked to get free, Tony quickly hurried up and yanked out a hair from her head. "Sorry! Gotta go!"

"O~kay," Rodney commented, "Hey, Tony! What're you up to!?"

"Sorry man!" the quickly retreating figure yelled back, "gotta run!"

"Alright," the Black Widow said lightly as Steve helped her up, "shall we go see what sort of mess the boys are making this time when mom and dad aren't around?"

With a frustrated grimace, Steve nodded and led the way, before rallying a small smile. "Mom and dad, huh? Is that how you see us?"

"Oh, we're divorced. You lied about your age when we got married, and I decided you're too old for me. Left you the kids, but I stay in touch."

"Appreciated. Now let's hope Tony's ego hasn't gotten out of control, again."

 **XXX**

 **Author Notes:**

 **I feel the need to comment on Wanda's oath, because while I believe that would be the strongest vow for her, it is entirely sibling love; I do not in any way ship them.**

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 **Next chapter: 'Shredded Expectations'**

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 **Please Review!**


	3. Shredded Expectations

For better or worse, I do not own any Marvel franchise

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Chapter 3: Shredded Expectations

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Steve and Natasha strode through the New Avengers Facility, heading towards Doctor Helen Cho's lab, determined to get to the bottom of all this. All they knew was that it seemed like Tony was keeping science secrets again, and the last two times he had done that he had created two immensely dangerous AIs. The first was a monster who wanted to destroy humanity, and the second was even more powerful, yet fortunately protected and loved life. Neither Avenger was interested in learning what a third unsupervised project could yield. And yes, they were sure Tony had learned his lesson, but he was acting decidedly odd.

Natasha held up a hand as they approached the sealed door to the lab, and pulled a small device off her belt, and attached it to the wall. Noting her all-too familiar aura of 'I'm in control and enjoying it,' Steve waited patiently for her to impress him once again as she finished setting up her toy.

"Nothing like walking into a room after hearing them talk about all their dirty secrets," she explained casually, "Great for at work, or during your personal time."

"Use it often?"

"Why? Are you finally bringing someone home with you at night?"

With a little smile, Steve just walked forward and put his ear to the door to use his enhanced hearing to listen directly, just as Natasha finished setting up. Sure enough, he could hear three people arguing inside.

"—so it's definitely Natasha's?" That was Clint.

"Positive. Fresh sample, right from the source," shot back Tony.

"Stark, this doesn't make any sense. He shouldn't—" And there was Dr. Cho.

"I know! That's what's been bugging me this whole time. There is absolutely no way whatsoever that this should be possible. But it is. You'd need a sample from years ago to make it happen, and Barton says they never did it. So my question for you is, could your Cradle of Life do it?"

"…What!? No! This, this, creating something like her is beyond it! Even with an old DNA sample that stayed viable! Definitely not with Bruce's DNA now. The gamma radiation corrupted it too much."

At this point Steve and Natasha were just staring at each other, frowning in confusion.

There was a moment of silence.

"Well, I feel the need to point out to you two geniuses, that there is still a baby girl sleeping on this desk, and you both say they are her parents."

"Yes, but the good news is that the baby is in perfect health," Cho added hastily.

Steve and Natasha froze up at this, sharing shocked looks.

"How perfect?" Tony's suspicious voice broke in, "As in, healthy for a kid that age, or in unusually good health?"

After making an exasperated noise, Cho went on to reassure Tony that there was absolutely nothing usual with the cute little baby girl, while Natasha pocketed her surveillance device, without turning it off, and she began to walk forward. None of her usual grace was present, her actions stiff, as if fighting against opposing desires: one wanting to get closer, the other wanting to run lest her hopes be shredded.

 **XXX**

Back at the gym, Sam and Rhodey were giving Wanda some exercising tips, while Vision threw in some advice he had gotten online.

"So you really have access to the entire internet in your head?"

"That is correct Sam. Is there anything in particular you wish to know?"

"Heh, I know," said Rhodey with a smile, "are people still claiming that Tony must be romantically involved with Banner, all because of that one photo of them standing together?"

"Yes, actually. In fact, there are numerous websites dedicated to theories about the romantic interactions between the original Avengers."

"Hmph, glad I've not been in the spotlight much yet," Wanda remarked as she put down her water bottle.

"I'm sorry to disappoint you Wanda, but…"

"You're kidding."

"Unfortunately not. There are numerous speculations already."

"…Okay, what do they think about Steve?" asked Sam.

"The general assumption is that he's involved with either Stark—"

"Don't let him hear that!"

"…Or Romanoff."

"Really? Her? She doesn't seem the type to settle down to me."

"You would know better than me, but there are theories about her 'relationships' with all of the original Avengers. But mainly Steve Rogers and Clint Barton."

"What about her and Dr. Banner?" Wanda asked, a strange look in her eyes.

"No, there isn't much on the two of them."

 _Huh, interesting…_ the telepath reflected.

 **XXX**

The door to the lab slammed open, and the occupants recoiled at the look on the Black Widow's face. Instinctively, the scientists moved aside to give her a clear look at a baby who had been sleeping until the loud noises had awoken her. For his part, Clint had quickly reached over to pick the baby up, and began rocking her, hoping to sooth her back to sleep. Outside the room, he could hear Steve reassuring Fury on his radio, saying that the recent gunshots that had totaled the door's lock were not a concern.

"Explain," Natasha said in a low, cold voice, one which brought to mind visions of horrific agony to anyone who heard it.

"Ahem, someone dropped a baby off at my house," at that, Natasha looked away from the Tony and Dr. Cho at that, focusing on Clint, knowing what this implied about her adopted family. He continued in a calm, professional manner for when he was giving serious mission reports, "They left a note, calling this baby 'Laura Fury Romanoff-Banner.'" He held up the note to show how the last two names were hyphenated, as well as the extent of his intelligence. "I went to Stark to see what he could learn, while keeping it quiet. His best stuff says the baby is yours and Banner's, which he says is impossible because of doc's _condition_. So we came here to see Dr. Cho, and she agrees. We just ran your DNA to confirm that there's nothing wrong with our computer records of you."

She turned her attention back to Tony and Cho, and saw confirmation in their faces. She looked at the computer screens, and while she was no scientist, she was very intelligent, and had picked up a surprising amount of practical knowledge. They all knew she was more than capable of verifying the information if she wanted to, but she trusted them (and her ability to sniff any attempts at deceit).

Hesitantly, Natasha entered and reached over, taking Laura from Clint's arms, and sat down in the nearest chair. Remembering when she had helped take care of Lila Barton when she was that age, the new mom started to gently rock her unexpected daughter back and forth.

She trusted these people, especially Clint, to tell her the truth, and they were saying that something she had thought irrevocably stolen from her had been given back. That she had a baby girl!

No tears came to her eyes, but inside, a little girl from before the Red Room cried with joy, and the killer she had become began planning how she would protect this treasure.

 **XXX**

"Alright," Tony finally broke in, unable to bring himself to interrupt this moment until now, but this was too important. "Natasha, I hate to do this, but there are some questions we need answered. Most importantly, where did this baby come from?" While the man was usually tactless, he decided to make an exception for this case. Besides, he had already used the "hiding the zucchini" line back in Sokovia and with Barton during the drive over. But no, there was no way he would believe Banner could have naturally conceived a child like this.

"This is obviously a surprise to you, a big one, but do you have _any_ idea where Laura came from? Because my Science Bro told me he couldn't have kids, and every school kid knows, or should know, what happens when you play around with too much radiation. There is no way he has any swimmers left. And even besides that, his DNA is too warped up. He scientifically couldn't have done it. Gotten you pregnant, I mean."

Steve cleared his throat after the inventor took a pause from his rant, and threw a glance at Natasha and the baby, and then looked Stark in the eye. "Sam got a look at my list of things to catch up on, and then dragged me, Vision, and Wanda off for a Star Wars marathon. Could she be…?"

"A clone? No. Definitely a child of Natasha and some other guy. We have nothing for a definite comparison, but it matches up overwhelmingly with a simulation Bruce made up for what his original DNA looked like. Heck, you can even cut and paste enough of the parts of his uncorrupted DNA over and see similarities. Even Dr. Cho here agrees with me."

"Aren't there some other records you could check with? The army must've had something on him," Steve interjected.

Natasha only shook her head at that, "No. Early on, when the army was still keeping the Hulk top secret and really compartmentalized, Bruce managed to get in and destroy all of his records and samples. He'd quickly realized the extent to which he had to go to into hiding." Only Clint could hear the pride in her voice at that, while the others were a little surprised at the initiative the usually meek seeming scientist had displayed.

"We double checked SHIELD's files when we got here," Clint added, filing this datum away for later, "nothing we can use. And if SHIELD has nothing, then no one does."

The unspoken observation of the man's current status hung in the air, until a frowning Black Widow looked up at Tony as she worked her way through what the inventor had and had _not_ said. "You think she was born in a lab?"

Helen Cho stepped forward at this, "It's hard to say. Theoretically, if it was just your DNA and we had a sample, it might work." Giving a small shrug in confusion, "Stark, Banner, and maybe I could do it, if we took enough time. And even then it would take the most cutting edge technology to even start. Asgardians might have the technology, but something like that, a binary clone, doesn't seem to suit them. At all. But Banner? That part doesn't make sense. The only way it could work, with Laura's normal genes if her 'dad DNA' came from before the accident. And we still don't know where someone could have gotten the technology to do this. Uhm, just to be one hundred percent clear it's not an option, did you two ever…"

"We only ever kissed," Natasha responded flatly, before putting a smile back on in case Laura woke up.

"W-wait," the scientist stammered, "you two were a couple? So someone did do this deliberately for you two?"

The Black Widow's expression never changed, but for some reason everyone felt a shiver go up their spines. Still smiling innocently, she sat up, handed her baby to Clint, whom above all else was her partner, and left the room.

"...Do we give her a head start, or do we run after her to keep her from killing anyone?" Tony asked, trying to deny the fear he felt.

Not believing Natasha would respond to this with a spree of homicide, Steve started to follow her, just fast enough to keep her in sight. Not wanting to be outdone, Tony was quickly on his heels. For his part, Clint silently indicated to Helen to close the door as best as she could, and sat back down with Laura, happy to see that she was still sleeping.

 **XXX**

Nick Fury quietly stared back at the Black Widow; his inability to decipher the conflicting emotions that were rapidly shifting across her face was more frightening than the time that 'Bucky' Barnes had shot him.

He stayed calm though, confident that he could control the situation. After all, she had not killed him yet. He knew that everyone could see what was happening through his office window after she had stormed in, forcefully yanked Maria Hill out of the room, and slammed the door shut with uncharacteristic force. Fortunately, the brief glance he had gotten showed Stark and Rogers were watching. The latter would have stopped her if she was going to anything too drastic.

Although, he would be having another conversation with Rogers about those reported gunshots from about five minutes ago. The ones the man had assured him were of no concern.

"Did. You. Know!?" she ground out, and again Fury's self-discipline wavered a little at his inability to read the most dangerous woman he had ever known.

"Whatever secrets I have left, Romanoff, you already know. Or are unrelated to you. Certainly nothing that would bring you or the Avengers after me like this."

She continued to stare at him for a moment, "A baby was dropped off at Clint's house." Surprising, and worrisome for the one-eyed man's second family, but he did not see how it would have set off Romanoff like—

"According to the note left behind, and all the science guys, she is mine and Bruce's!"

His jaw actually dropped. " _…_ What!?"

Fury found himself caught between two conflicting emotions of joy and horror.

Joy that this woman he cared about had a child now. Despite what her medical reports had said. Joy that she had something that might allow her to fully break away from her past.

Horror at who the father was. In any other circumstance he would have been happy for similar reasons, that two people that life had given a rotten hand had gotten an unexpected win. But if word got out that the Hulk had a child, all too many people would go after it to try and control Banner and his dangerous half. Thinking they were smart enough to pull it off without the Hulk tearing them and half a city apart to protect his baby. Banner had avoided a massacre so far, but what lengths would he go to as a father protecting his child!?

Even while managing to avoid any deaths, the man had still left behind destroyed homes, shattered lives, and traumatized families. Adults who had been nearly beaten to death, and children whose innocence had been shattered by a roaring menace.

Visibly struggling to regain his self-control, Fury stepped forward, "I had no idea of this. Certainly not when I talked to you when we found his crashed jet. I will take any truth and lie detector test you require to prove that all of this is no way whatsoever part of some Machiavellian scheme of mine."

After a moment, she slowly composed herself and looked to the side, relieved that he had not betrayed her, "Sorry."

"Don't be." Nodding as she shot a glance back up at him, "I outright said I hoped you two would get together, and a few weeks later, a child from both of you shows up? And with all the plans and manipulative acts I've carried out over the years? I would've been dragging me down to interrogation if I were in your place." Turning towards the office windows, he gave the audience a reassuring nod, and gestured to them to get back to work. "You're going to keep the baby?", though it was clear what the answer was going to be.

"Yes. It's a girl. Laura Fury Romanoff-Banner. The note that came with her said that."

The older man was stupefied again … _Someone named a baby girl after me?_ Clearing his throat, he forced himself to stay professional, "Calling her Laura seems appropriate, but it implies too much knowledge about your personal life."

With a sharp nod of agreement, Natasha then asked if he wanted to see the baby.

 **XXX**

Fury insisted that they keep this confidential for the immediate future, and no one disagreed. While not everyone had come to the same morbid conclusions as him, they all felt a connection to this little girl, and wanted to keep her hidden as long as possible. At the same time, they were aware of the hazards of keeping too many secrets, so the rest of the New Avengers had been brought in and were standing around Dr. Cho's office.

Natasha was the exception, as she was sitting down with her baby, holding Laura safely in her arms. As for the little cutie, she was awake and gurgling at her smiling mom. Everyone was content with this, not wanting to disrupt the peace and quiet, or bring up the elephant in the room. Eventually though, the more responsible members started sharing looks and braced themselves.

"Okay, what about Bruce?" Captain America finally asked. Personally, he felt a strong desire to contact Banner, regardless of the fact that the man wanted to be left alone. During World War One, Steve's father had been killed before his wife had even given birth. Laura would always have Natasha, and the rest of the Avengers, but she deserved to have her dad too.

Having had time to reflect upon his own daddy issues on the drive over, Tony gave a nod as the elephant in the room was brought up. "I got everything prepped before coming here, and sent FRIDAY confirmation after we talked to Cho. I made the guy promise early on to keep a way to stay in contact in emergencies. In exchange, I showed him how SHIELD had found him before, along with some other tips to stay hidden. We have a few ways to get his attention, but it might take a little while, depending how far he's gone underground."

Looking around at all the grim faces, Helen Cho decided she needed to get more involved. "Uhm, guys, I'm still a little confused here. I get that you guys are all worried about something, but frankly, I'm just confused. Like, Romanoff, why would someone make a baby for you and Banner? It sounds like two were only getting started, so why go to that kind of trouble, and drop her off at the doorstep of a retired super-agent, wherever he was."

With a small sigh, Fury got her attention and explained, "The problem is doctor, that we've all seen too many strange things that've turned into problems. You're all saying this baby isn't—" He reconsidered his next words when she saw the look Black Widow was giving him, "—from Natasha directly, and neither you or Stark here know where she came from. The only other people we know with these kinds of resources are people like HYDRA. And the fact that whomever is behind this is being so secretive is not reassuring."

"Yes," Wanda added in her accented voice, "strange, ground breaking science that no one has heard of before. That tends to come from mad scientists like the ones who enhanced Pietro and me." Clint was glad to note she was no longer so conflicted over saying her brother's name, taking it as a sign that she was slowly getting better.

"No," Tony said in his irritating lecturing voice, "it's completely different from some nutjob in a lab coat making some new weapon. This kid is useless is for that. Everyone is a result of Nature and Nurture and their own choices. A child of Banner and Romanoff wouldn't grow up to be a rage monster super spy. Especially without being irradiated by gamma radiation, and that would probably kill her."

Only Clint, Steve, and Fury noticed the gun that magically appeared in Natasha's left hand, and which disappeared before Wanda could glance over towards the thoughts she had sensed.

Unaware, the inventor continued, "They'd grow up to be intelligent, probably very intelligent if the biological odds favour them, but after that you'd need to raise and train the kid. And who has time for that?"

Silence reined as everyone pondered possibilities.

"We're both sterile," Natasha finally, quietly, spoke up. Raising her gaze up from her daughter, she looked at her surprised comrades, her friends. And with a most unpleasant smile, continued, "And now the two people who would be the most emotionally vulnerable to discovering a baby of their own, have one. What are the odds?"

Now everyone understood what Fury was already concerned about. That someone might have given the baby to try and control the Hulk and Black Widow.

"If so," Clint said softly, "it's someone new. All of Natasha's old enemies have been dealt with, one way or another. As for the good doctor, his only real enemies are in the US military, and SHIELD keeps a close eye on them on principle. Any Hulk related matters are given a full investigation, and we'd know about it."

Tony nodded in agreement; he kept his own eyes on his former top customers. After all, they had attempted to confiscate his armour, and he had further refined his surveillance to help keep an eye out for Bruce once they had become friends. "And what's left of HYDRA is too busy trying to survive right now, and this is different from their M.O."

"Seems like too much work, too," Rhodey added, feeling a little left out from the conversation. "There's got to be easier hostages."

"The note's bugging me too," Clint said, while holding it up. "All it's got is her name, but nothing else. Not giving us any warnings about allergies is just dangerous, but there's also nothing about personal preferences in food, sleeping habits, no advice at for someone to take care of a kid that was just dropped on their front porch. Only the bare minimum of supplies to last a few days too, if you want to do it right. They didn't even leave her a toy! Who does that!?

"Whoever did this either didn't care enough about her to write that down, but still told us what to call her, or didn't know enough about her in the first place."

"Could be misdirection of course," Fury warned.

"Yeah, but it just doesn't seem right, doesn't seem to fit with what we've already found out."

"Enough!" Steve said firmly, noticing how others wanted to speak up, channeling all of his authority. "We're not getting anywhere with this speculation. We still have too many questions, but what matters right now is making sure Laura is safe!"

Fury nodded. He still suspected HYDRA, because of how they did not know anyone else with the theoretical resources, but it was possible they had target fixation with the organization. He would have to sit back and look at this from a fresh angle later today.

"Indeed," Vision spoke up, walking forward and kneeled down to Widow's eye level. "You, and everyone else here are assuming that this baby is part of some scheme against you. But we don't know that, and so we should accept this for the miracle it is. And whatever happens, we will make sure nothing happens to threaten her or her family."

"Yeah, and the world's _so_ safe," was the biting reply, but she saw how everyone was smiling and nodding in agreement with Vision's words. So she relented and looked at them all in the eyes with gratitude.

And then to show she was not suddenly getting soft, shot a look and a quip at Tony, "At least by the time she's eighteen, you'll be too old for her to want to look at. Means I don't have to do anything pre-emptive."

Tony babbled on about how he felt wounded, and that he was in a serious relationship anyways, until Sam spoke up, "Um, did the baby come with any, you know, baby stuff?"

As if on cue, Laura began to omit a noxious smell, and actually began to giggle.

Instantly, Earth's Mightiest Heroes instantly began backing up, remembering previous engagements.

Until a piercing Russian glare made them reprioritize, and volunteer to go find something helpful.

Heading off to find something to improvise with, Tony muttered to his best friend, "Did you see that timing? I bet the kid did that deliberately! Smarter than it looks, with an attitude like her mother's!"

For his part, Rhodey just rolled his eyes, and tried to think where they could get some cloth to make diapers out of.

 **XXX**

 **Author Notes:**

 **I know Steve Rogers does not necessarily have super-hearing according to the Marvel Cinematic Wiki, but I feel his enhanced physique would have come with that a bit. Plus, enhanced intelligence would help him discern different sounds better.**

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 **Next chapter: the Avengers try to bring Bruce home**

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	4. Even the Strongest Beast

For better or worse, I do not own any of the Marvel franchise.

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Chapter 4: Even the Strongest Beast Yields to the Cutest Creature

Or

Neither the Deadliest nor the Strongest an withstand the Dope Slap of Authority

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 _Previously: The New Avengers have all been informed on the existence of Laura Fury Romanoff-Banner, and have all started preparations to care for and raise the child despite dark suspicions on her origin. As part of this, they have also started working on contacting the baby girl's father: Dr. Bruce Banner._

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Doctor Bruce Banner paused during his food trip, and picked up a battered newspaper from the dirty ground. It was unusual to see one around here, but what had really caught his attention was the large advertisement for a new Stark Industries product. A particular one, that Tony had been carefully holding in reserve, along with a familiar slogan. All part of a message the two 'Science Bros' had worked out shortly after he had come to live in what was eventually called the Avengers Tower.

It took him a few more days to get anywhere near the internet, and to discreetly access a public forum. The message was rather short: "Get a hold of us, or you'll never forgive yourself."

"Now, now. What would make Tony say something like that?" Bruce wondered aloud. What could be worse than his previous acts of hubris? Worse than the Hulk? Ultron? What could he regret more than Natasha?

 **XXX**

Clint Barton calmly piloted the Quinjet towards where Banner had told them to meet him. He had volunteered for this, not just because it had started with him and his farm, but because he needed to have a chat with Banner. Specifically, regarding his intentions towards someone Clint regarded as a sister. He knew he should be getting back to the farm, but Laura, the wife, not the baby, would expect him to make sure everything was going okay with Natasha first. Besides, he was still only acting as an errand boy.

Truthfully, Laura's revelation that Banner and Natasha had feelings for each other had been shocking. He knew from their previous conversations, that Nat respected the man, especially for his mind. She had reflected upon the duo's first meeting in Calcutta, where Banner had demonstrated impressive insight and intelligence (for various reasons she felt that Stark was still an idiot). From Clint and Nat's later conversations when they were talking about the Avengers, she had admitted that her earlier impression of Banner had been reinforced as they interacted more.

As much as she despised the source, Nat was still very prideful of her abilities, and enjoyed a challenge. Yet what she appreciated the most was a game of wits; her mind against someone else, be it seduction, driving a target into a kill zone, or her daily verbal sparring with everyone else. For like her to acknowledge someone else was high praise.

So Clint had not been surprised that Nat and Banner were friends. When he was at the Avengers Tower he often saw them together, chatting away, watching an old movie, and other things.

Yet still, what had Laura seen that the man the world called 'Hawkeye' had missed?

 **XXX**

Wanda Maximoff, the Scarlet Witch, knew better than most what a dangerous man Banner was, and not because of the Hulk. The cold certainty in his voice when he had threatened to choke the life out of her during the confrontation over activating Vision, had sent shivers down her spine.

And while Stark had been the one to dream up both Ultron and Vision, it was this meek seeming, bespectacled man that had made it possible. She was sadly aware of how dangerous a mad scientist could be, and this man was a genius in multiple scientific fields. The man even Stark referred to as the best in bio-organics, and also apparently the one who had made the "Veronica" Hulkbuster armour capable of going head-to-head with the Hulk, and win.

When she had been fighting against the Avengers, she had seen them as people who were empowered like her, but who did whatever they wanted, regardless of the consequences, so long as they ultimately served the American government. Just like how she had viewed Tony Stark. While she knew better now, her initial impressions of Banner had not changed as much as people might think. With the Hulk on his side, very few people could hope to confront him. Even when he was in his human form, any attack, no matter how lethal, would just trigger the change. If he wanted something, who would say no to whatever he wanted? Who could?

Only his personal nature, which everyone regarded as that of a decent, kind man, prevented him from becoming a true monster everyone should rightfully fear and hate. But he was also a man who claimed to be always angry, yet somehow constantly controlling and directing it. And Wanda's experience with messing with people's minds had shown her just how fragile they could be.

And now Clint and the others were heading out to bring this person back?

 **XXX**

Bruce Banner was sitting on a hill well away from where he had been living; after all, he might be going back there. He was using the wait to try and collect his thoughts about the last few weeks. Truthfully, he had been trying to distract his mind with hiding from the world and surviving the day to day routine in this less developed place. Now though, he knew he had to face what was coming.

Contrary to what people might believe, being with the Avengers had been in many ways an unsettling experience. Ever since he had lost his previous life, all he had dreamed of was getting back, having, friends, and family. And then he had gotten it, and it felt surreal.

Before joining the Avengers, Bruce had had easy categories for the people he interacted with: strangers who did not know who he was, and should be avoided for their own safety, or people who did know who he was and feared him. With the Avengers, there had also been respect and an increasing circle of friendship.

Tony had defied Bruce's classification in that he would deliberately provoke his newfound Science Bro. Unbelievably, he actively encouraged Bruce to let go of some of his constant self-control. He even tried to make Bruce see the Other Guy as a positive thing (" _Hah!_ "), and had actually expected that Bruce would show up to help in New York.

Natasha, Nat, had started in the fear column, but she made it clear from the start that she respected him as a scientist too. Afterwards, she had made a point of approaching him to try and overcome those feelings. Later, as they grew closer, she also worked to help him find that balance between self-control and not bottling everything up too much, to laugh and have fun. To actually enjoy his life. She would console him after a Code: Green, warding off the whispers of his guilt and despair.

At first, for him the strongest barrier between them had been the issue of trust. During their first meeting, she had laced the conversation with lies and omitted truths, and she was a super-spy who specialized in getting people to dance to her tune. Just ask Loki. Oh wait, he was dead.

In the end though, he had been forced to accept a simple fact: he was happy with Natasha. After she had moved into the Avengers Tower after shutting down SHIELD, they had spent many nights just staying up and talking. Or playing cards and board games, cooking together, listening to opera and discussing (arguing) about the various songs, retaliating against Tony and one of his pranks or ill thought out ideas (which could be both really, since who in their right mind pulled a prank on the Black Widow?), and a hundred other things. Oh sure, he had hung out with the others too, become more than just teammates with them all, yet it was not the same as it was with her.

He had come to realize he definitely did trust Nat. So did the Other Guy, which is why he would revert to back to Bruce only with her. The Lullaby did not work with any of the other Avengers; she was the only one for some reason, even though Clint or an armour-less Tony were lesser threats than her. For her and her alone, the Hulk was willing to be vulnerable.

Moreover, the Lullaby had given Bruce profound respect for Natasha. She had originally been utterly terrified of him, and had been chased and hurt by the Hulk. Yet she would still bring herself to approach the Other Guy, during his rampages, and calm him down. Again and again.

And so, after that talk at the bar, when she had been flirting with him, before Ultron showed up… Bruce had begun wondering if there really was more for him in life than he had previously allowed himself to believe.

And then that _witch_ had happened. She had shown him something that for the life of him he could not deny. And he knew that just wishing for a normal life again, was infinitely safer than the risks of trying to have an actual one.

So he had gone back into hiding and healing the sick. So long as he kept his cool, everything should be okay. He might have to move on eventually, but he already had plans in place for that.

And during those quiet moments, he tried to not think about Natasha. He tried to not think about how it ashamed he now felt, trying to run away from his friends. At the time, he had honestly believed it would be too dangerous for him to get into a fight near civilians, and now the news was saying otherwise. The public reports from before he went underground that the Witch's brother had died, and he had been one of the strongest of them all. Interviews had revealed how despite all of the Avengers fighting liking titans to protect the civilians, including the Other Guy, far too many people had been killed. That even the world itself had nearly been destroyed.

He tried not to wonder about Natasha's last words, saying how she needed "the Big Guy," trying to understand if she had forcefully changed him to add another fighter to the mix, or if she had done it to stop him from making a mistake.

He was not sure which answer he preferred really. One told him how much she cared about him, and the other would make it easier for him to distance himself from her, which meant she would be safer.

Because at the end of the day, he knew that while he could now trust the Avengers to stay safe around him, he also knew that he could never, _ever_ , trust the Other Guy.

 _But who or what am I really running from?_ a part of him wondered.

There was something else he tried not to think about. He tried to not dwell upon seeing couples walking together. Or families spending time with each other. And especially not the happy, content looks on their faces.

 _I can't have that, I can never have that_ , he repeated to himself, reminding himself of the reasons why he could not have a future, and actively tried to ignore how hollow they sounded sometimes.

 **XXX**

Finally, the Quinjet had arrived.

As Tony had said in his follow-up message, only a few people were on it. Clint was a little bit of a surprise, and it made Bruce worry about Nat. Steve's friend, Sam Wilson was there too. Evidently he was a New Avenger now, given that he had a brand new set of wings. Then there was Tony's friend, Rhodey was it? The man was in his War Machine armour, but interestingly was carrying his helmet to the side. The lack of weapons the others were showing was supposed to be reassuring, but Bruce knew that they could have them out and be mobile before he was done transforming. Especially since, yep, there was Vision coming up the rear.

"So, what's this all about then?" he addressed to Clint, "Tony's message seemed pretty serious."

"Banner, you might want to sit back down for this one."

"Why?" the unkempt runaway asked the archer with a forced smile, "Afraid you'll upset me?"

"Based on Nat's response, and everyone else's, I am expecting an emotional reaction, yes. And I would like to remind you, yes we do remember about the Hulk," Bruce just raised an eyebrow at that, "so bear that in mind when you're trying to decide whether we're telling the truth or not."

 **XXX**

"Barton, this is Fury. You read me?"

"Barton here, sir."

"We read you heading back. Everything okay?"

"He mostly just stared at us in disbelief, and walked into the Quinjet, and sat down. Buckled up when I reminded him to."

"Your assessment?"

"Same as all of us sir: completely and utterly confused."

 **XXX**

For the life of him, Bruce was having trouble remembering how exactly he had gotten onboard with the others. Whatever he had been expecting them to say, that had not been it. At all. And the next thing he knew, he found himself walking forward to join them. He suspected he could have turned around if he had wanted to, but honestly, that idea had never really occurred to him.

So here he was, fiddling with his hands and wishing he had his headphones to listen to music. Any music. The distraction would have been especially welcome, because the ride to wherever it was the Avengers were now staying was a little awkward. All the New Avengers seemed to want to say something, but were unsure where to start. As for Clint, he was busy piloting.

Finally, "Are you my father?" a British accented voice asked.

Slowly, Bruce turned to look at Vision, "Pardon?"

"In many ways, Ultron, Dr. Helen Cho, and Tony were instrumental in my birth. Yet so were you. Do you feel that makes you one of my parents?"

Bruce stared back for a moment, wondering if Vision was testing him, until he decided to just say what he thought. "No, I'm not. I would never have thought to have made you, and you know I was unwilling at first. You were, for lack of a better term, Tony and Ultron's 'vision.' What they dreamed of. Thor and I were more of the midwives. I'm not sure how Dr. Cho feels about all this."

With that, Bruce turned back to staring into space, signaling the conversation was over, but Vision was not done, "So what does that make Laura? The baby?"

Clint's hands tightened on the flight controls, waiting to hear what Bruce was going to say, knowing it would make all the difference in what was to come.

"…If I answer, will you let me sit and think?"

"If it is an honest response, then yes I will leave you be."

"Hmm, yeah I guess you've got enough tech to act as lie detector, don't you? Okay, well, a baby, someone I could be there for and raise, _is_ something I've dreamed of. That I've wanted. And known for years that I can never have. So while I'm still unsure about all of this, I'm here to figure out what's going on. I'm coming to see her. Laura. While with you, I'm denying all responsibility. Satisfied?"

"Yes. Thank you."

 **XXX**

"Banner!" Clint called out, as the scientist stood up to leave the Quinjet. Calmly walking up to the man, Clint put a hand on his shoulder, activated a little surveillance jammer with his other hand, and looked Bruce Banner straight in the eye, and lowered his voice so only Banner could hear. "Don't throw this chance away. Not just for yourself, but for Nat too. I don't know what exactly is going on between you, I leave that to Laura, my Laura, and she's never wrong, but I get the gist. Somehow, you two cared about each other a lot, before that mess with Ultron and Wanda went down. Hopefully, you still do. Right now, I can't say what's going to happen. But that little girl deserves a family, and both you and Nat deserve more in life than you've been allowing yourselves." Without giving the man a chance to reply, Clint hit the door switch, and exited the vehicle.

"Dr. Banner?" another voice spoke up. Glancing over, Bruce noted Sam Wilson looking over at him, this therapist face on, "Feel I should point out, all of us Avengers have issues. You got by for so long because you all were able to help each other. But by the sounds of it, most of you would have benefited from having a dad in your lives more."

Flinching, Bruce looked down and turned away, following Hawkeye at a brisk pace.

"Banner!"

Against his better judgment, Bruce looked back at Falcon.

"It's up to you. Not the Other Guy."

Struggling with himself, the scientist hurried off.

Silence reigned in the Quinjet, until War Machine spoke up, "I don't have issues."

"You're best friends with Tony Stark. You've got issues."

 **XXX**

"Thanks Steve," Natasha said into her radio, "we'll be there soon."

"Okay, I hope you know what you're doing."

Without another word, she turned her attention back to Laura who was crying for some reason. Perversely, she was glad her daughter was upset, because it helped distract her thoughts from the man that was approaching. Kept her from wondering how she was supposed to react.

Natasha had to admit, she had actually been forced to get a little blatant with her flirting, since the man's self-loathing and years of isolation had made his social skills a little rusty. Also, her more subtle attempts at flirtation had gone over his head. The idea that a woman would want to be with him, despite knowing about the Big Guy, had become completely alien to him. For example, she had started to shelve some of her more sarcastic attitude when around him, except when it acted as an invitation to talk more.

And if the redhead was to be honest, it had felt good to open up more. To let go of the usual lies and expose more of whom she was to someone. To not be constantly remaking herself for different people. She had done this before, first with Clint and his family, and then with Steve as they took on HYDRA. Yet somehow with Bruce it had been different, and it had all come out in a different way. As time progress, she had realized there was more simmering underneath her self-control than even she expected.

Of course, if anyone pressed her on the matter, she would just claim that seeing him stutter and blush when she flirted with him, just made him all the more adorable and amusing. Unless the people asking were the Clint and Laura, or maybe Steve. Depending on how this turned out, she might have to talk to Bruce about it more too. Regardless of how this ended, he truly was one of the her few precious people

 _I really should have taken the time to go talk to Laura Barton about all this. I could really use the help._

For now though, she decided she had to reinforce her self-control, and remain professional. She was sure Bruce would understand. Well, right up to the part where he heard what she had planned at least.

 **XXX**

Bruce headed towards Dr. Cho's lab, since everyone had assumed he would want to look things over himself. As he approached, he noted signs that all nearby offices had been cleared out, giving more privacy. Or security. Then he heard it drifting down the halls: the loud wails that could only come from one source, " _It's true. A baby_."

Slowly he opened the door, to see Natasha just starting to feed some baby formula to a little, squirming bundle that had just stopped crying. Moving one foot in front of the other, rubbing his hands against each other faster and faster, he came up and hesitantly reached out a shaking hand. Just when he thought he would lose his nerve, Natasha, without ever looking up from her task, told him, "Go ahead. She looks even more beautiful without tears on."

With a final gulp, he obediently let his finger gently brush against Laura's face, cleaning it up. _She has Nat's eyes_.

'I thought you would want to come here first, to confirm it.'

Still that calm, not quite emotionless, voice, but that was probably because she did not want to worry or confuse her (their!?) daughter. Bruce could tell how hard she was clamping down on her emotions from both her body language and past experience with her in stressful situations. He could empathize with her, seeing as how he was doing the same, and probably for similar reasons.

"No need. By the sounds of it, and the file Clint handed me when he could see my initial disbelief, if there is anything off, it would take a long and intensive study. And Tony and Dr. Cho are probably already doing that."

"Good. Then we can get started."

"I see. And what are we starting?"

"Showing her the Big Guy."

"…I beg your pardon."

Now she was turned and facing him. She could see the signs, his body language, and the flicker in his forehead as he gathered his willpower together to say that simple, ultra-polite sentence. Bruce was nettled. Really nettled.

That was fine, so was Natasha, and she did not hesitate to show it as she vented all her frustration with the man.

"You're going Hulk, and we're seeing how he reacts around her. We are doing this, because otherwise you are going to turn around and leave out of your fear of what _might_ happen to Laura, and that is unacceptable! Whatever else, I'm not going to let you live your live wondering what could have happened if you had just stayed to see her! And so help me, Bruce, you can walk with me and your daughter to the specially prepared field, or I will shoot you here and now and deal with the consequences!" They were nose to nose now as she glared at him, her voice becoming increasingly dangerous.

"And if you're wrong?" he choked out, "Natasha, she's everything I, you've wanted. I left for a reason. So please, don't force this on me."

Her face softening, Natasha removed a hand from Laura and put it on Bruce's cheek, while the baby stared up at Bruce with wide eyes. "Bruce, in the end, I do believe in you, and I know that you will not hurt Laura. And yes, she is everything that I wanted as a little girl, and had torn from me. I will kill anyone and anything that remotely threatens her. Except for you, because I know who you are, despite what you tell yourself, and you will never have to fear hurting her.

"You told me you were too big a threat to live anywhere, that you had no future. Well here is proof that you do have a future, and I want you to accept you're not a threat. Not to us.

"So I'm asking you to do this, so you can be with her without every worrying about the Big Guy lashing out at her in anger. I won't shoot you, I'm sorry for saying that. I have no right to force you into the Hulk for this, because it's got to be your choice. But Bruce, you have no idea how much I want you to have this chance. Because—"

And there she cut herself off, twisting her face with supressed feelings, but he seemed to understand, and something in his eyes shifted, and he gave a small nod in agreement.

 **XXX**

All available Avengers stood in a circle around Bruce, Natasha, and baby Laura. Tony was in his Hulkbuster suit, with the Veronica drop pod hovering nearby. Wanda had her arms extended, ready to use her powers to pull the mother and daughter to safety in an instant. Vision, Falcon, and War Machine were confirming that there was no one in the region, while the others kept their eyes focused on Bruce.

Shivering a little with the chill from only wearing his special Avengers' pants, Bruce was done psyching himself up to get started. With one last awkward glance at Natasha and the baby, who was staring back as she sucked on a pacifier, he began his transformation, and blacked out to the world.

The Hulk stood tall, muscles rippling as he rose over everyone there. Black Widow felt the ground under her shift a little at the pressure being pushed down on it, and fought down her fear as her hair lightly blew from the giant's breath. Uncharacteristically, there was no anger, nor inhuman roaring, only the Big Guy's face looking down in confusion.

Everyone held their breath's as Laura looked back and spat out her pacifier. And then, to the incredulity of everyone, beamed a smile, and heedlessly reached out her hands to the towering behemoth and began to giggle at him.

"FRIDAY," Tony muttered as he listened to the cheerful noises the ignorant child was making, "confirm we're recording this."

"Yes, Boss. Backing up copies now."

Hulk's surprise was no less than anyone else, his attention solely upon Puny Banner's offspring. Slowly, the Big Guy reached out a single index finger, ever so slowly, until little baby hands wrapped around it, and held fast. With a spasm, the Hulk pulled back, and began to writhe.

Quickly, Natasha adjusted her baby so she was looking at her, and made more of the cooing noises she had perfected in the past at the Barton homestead, and rubbed Laura's forehead in a soothing manner, working to drown out the noises of Bruce remerging.

Silently, the scientist, pulled himself to his feet, and walked over with a dazed expression.

"Well," Tony blurted out on his speakers, "that happened."

Coming down from their adrenaline rushes, except for Vision, no one could find the motivation to say anything else.

 **XXX**

Back inside, everyone collapsed in the team's private lounge for a breather. Everyone was going on about what they had witnessed, repeating over and over again their disbelief. Even Vision was having an earnest discussion about it with Wanda.

For her part, Natasha just sat down on the arm of Bruce's chair, denying him his attempt at isolation, and put Laura in his lap. Slowly, he picked her up, staring into her open green eyes, and actually smiled. Natasha joined in as she watched wrinkles and creases fade from his face, just letting herself enjoy the moment.

After a while of making faces at his daughter and watching her wave her hands about, Bruce looked up at her, "Alright, you were right," to which she just smirked and nodded, "and I'll stay until tomorrow at least." Seeing her face stiffen at this, he cut her off with, "We still have a lot to talk about." She gave no response to that, so continued with, "Is there anything else I should know about?"

"Steve's been insisting we use polite language around the baby. I'm going along with it because he's a dependable future babysitter."

"And by dependable you mean he can take on an army of intruders?"

For his part, Steve was rolling his eyes to the heavens. _Just like when we were fighting HYDRA. You correct someone about swearing in front of a baby one time, and you never hear the end of it. On the plus side, babysitting doesn't sound so bad_.

Then a thought struck the Sentinel of Liberty. "Hey, has the kid been baptized yet?" Everyone else just exchanged looks with each other, before turning to look at Romanoff and Banner, who were also looking at each other in surprise.

"…We'll add that to the list of things to talk about."

Seeing how late it was getting, and how sleepy Laura was starting to get, Natasha picked her up from Bruce's arms, telling him to follow them to her room to put the baby to bed. Clint followed close behind, since he was still the closest thing to a childcare expert they had. After a minute's heads start, the rest of the Avengers followed.

 **XXX**

The two of them just sat side-by-side on the edge of the bed, the scientist and super-spy/assassin, trying to absorb everything. Both of them had so much they wanted to say, and felt that the other should say first. To talk about how she had pushed him, how he had run away without her, figuring out what they had been to each other before Ultron and Wanda. Oh, and they should probably talk some more about how they somehow had a baby. With each other.

"Go to bed."

Both glanced up at the speaker, as Clint walked forward towards them. He could see how despite the brave fronts they tried to put up, they were both utterly exhausted, and knew that tonight was not the night for them to try and resolve their feelings. Nat was still coming to grips with how a dream she had thought impossible had been fulfilled, one that she had only been able to taste as 'Aunty Nat,' had come true. Bruce was in a similar boat, trying to wrap his head around this drastic shift in his life, and had been given less time than Nat to get used to it.

Even for an average pair of people, it would be difficult to fully process how the two suddenly had a baby who was already born and partially grown, learning that someone else had already named her, and was now sleeping in a makeshift cradle in front of them. Unfortunately, neither Natasha nor Bruce was ordinary, as they both carried heavy emotional scars of the past. Laura represented a happiness that had not only seemed inconceivable to both of them, but one that for a long time the two of them had believed they had no right to enjoy.

Hopefully, Clint's all-too observant wife was right, and that being with each other was the key that made them think a normal and happy life was actually possible. That Nat would pursue it not because she felt she deserved it, but because she believed Bruce did. She would strive to make it work in order to help Bruce, and he would do the same in turn for the exact same reasons. Ah, love.

Granted, they may never have a normal life, but hopefully a 'normal-er' one was possible.

"It's been a long day, and you two are still trying to adjust. Personally," not even amongst SHIELD would he casually mention his own family experience, "I would go to bed, get some rest, and you two can figure it out tomorrow." Seeing some hesitation, he decided to play dirty, "Laura needs you two at her best."

Sharing a look, the two new parents stood up. Licking his lips, Bruce looked around Natasha's flat, "Can I take the couch? I'm not sure I have a room yet, and, well…"

"You want to stay near her," the redhead finished for him, making a statement, not a question.

"Yes," was the blunt response.

Turning away, she walked towards a closet, and pulled out some blankets and a pillow, and brought them back to him. When he went to take them, she held on, making his eyes snap up to hers so she could get her message across, "But tomorrow, we are having a talk."

Following a deep breath, he answered, "I don't want her to grow up without a father. And now I know the Other Guy won't hurt her. But she deserv—"

Clint slapped them both over their heads. Hard. They both just stared at him in disbelief.

"Bed! Now!"

Seeing they were properly chastised, the archer waited until Banner had left the room to lie down before following, and closed the bedroom door behind him to make his message clear to both of them. Calmly and confidently he walked out, shut the door to Black Widow's flat, and slowly sank to the ground with his back to the wall.  
There was a sense of déjà vu as Steve and Vision were staring at him with similar shock, while the others who lacked special senses just looked confused.

"Did you just…?"

"Yep. And the fact that the Big Guy stayed quiet, and she didn't strike back, told me as much as it told them how messed up they really are right now. Got the message across just fine."

Looking at Vision, Steve asked the android if he wanted to stay with him outside the couple's room tonight, to be there for them in the morning. Everyone else began their own plans, while an emotionally drained Clint drifted off to dreamland while sitting up.

 **XXX**

 **Author Notes:**

 **Here we see Hawkeye using the extra authority he has in all this, stemming from the fact both new parents know that he is a man who somehow managed to make a family life work despite the insanity of the Avengers' lives, so they are willing to listen to him a bit.**

 **When Bruce is thinking about his relationship with Natasha, it kind of reflects how I felt about their whole romance when I was watching the movie. At first I was suspicious, because she is a super-spy after all, and I was thinking of other darker versions of Black Widow. I suspected she was manipulating him to control the Hulk. Yet as time passed, I was swayed by the beauty of their romance, and fell for it.**

 **I was thinking about that conversation I wrote between Sam and Bruce, and something connected for me: the New Avengers have a teammate who actually specializes in helping veterans and soldiers deal with PTSD. Concept! Given how much Tony's own lingering trauma from the invasion of New York helped drive the plots of Iron Man 3 and Age of Ultron, they could have really used having Falcon around earlier. He may not be the most powerful member of the New Avengers, but may easily become one of the most valued.**

 **As for the comment about dads in the lives of the original Avengers, I recommend reading** **"Their Dad" by** **rightforlife** **. A funny one-shot that also outlines what the childhoods of the Avengers. The fact that this cannot be cannon is one of the few things I regret about Age of Ultron.**

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 **Other recommended stories:**

 **"** **Like a Mirror, Reflecting Me"** **by** **modernxxmyth**

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 **Next chapter: 'Running Home,' where Bruce and Natasha finally sit down and talk**

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 **Please Review!**


	5. Running Home

For better or worse, I do not own any Marvel franchise.

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Many thanks to my wonderful Beta, AutumnFroste, who writes some pretty cool stories. Go read them!

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Chapter 5: Running Home

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 _Previously: After Bruce was convinced he was not a threat to Laura, Clint ordered both parents to go to bed before letting them talk out their relationship issues on the grounds that they had already had a long and emotional day._

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Ideally, both Natasha and Bruce could have dealt with their personal drama after a good night's rest, followed by a hearty breakfast. Instead, Laura decided to keep the two of them up at night with her crying. So their initial conversations basically involved the two of them trying to get their daughter back to sleep, and getting some rest themselves.

While Natasha had been putting on a good front, especially with the help of makeup, the truth was that she had not been getting a good night's sleep lately. Even before this drastic change in her life, she often had nightmares, especially when she had not seen Bruce for a while, but she had made do in the past. Unfortunately, she was now also trying to suddenly be a single mom for a little baby who had been thrust into a new and strange environment. And as innocent and calm as Laura could be during the day, mostly, she was a terror at night. Of course, the others had offered to help, but Natasha had refused. Finally, there was also no small amount of emotional exhaustion.

Consequently, infamous Black Widow was actually too tired to wake up when Clint opened the door to her flat, or realize the implications of his chuckles. Not until he had already texted his wife and kids a picture of her sleeping with Bruce on the couch they had collapsed on together at four in the morning, after comforting Laura for the umpteenth time.

"…If anyone else sees that picture," she growled as she shot up, "I'll give each of your kids cans of Red Bull when you're not watching."

Awoken by the sudden movement, Bruce was also starting to rise, blinking owlishly at the two super-spies, unaware of how professionally embarrassed Natasha was.

Partially misreading what he had just witnessed, and deciding that the atmosphere in the room made this as good a time as any, Clint quickly strode into the bedroom, snatched up the couple's daughter, grabbed a pre-prepared bag of baby supplies that Natasha's experience at the Barton farm had taught her to make, and walked out of the apartment. Leaving the two of them alone in the living room.

They just stared at each other as the minutes passed by, until Natasha spoke up, "About pushing you off the cliff, I'm—"

Bruce just shook his hand in dismissal, "No, I get why you did that. I heard what happened afterwards, and if anyone else had died because the Hulk wasn't present…"

She nodded, feeling some relief, but continued, "Still, I am sorry."

"I said it's okay."

"…Why did the Hulk run? Not you, the Big Guy."

"…I'm not too sure. I guess he ran because that was all he could think of. And I just had to…" and he trailed off, no longer looking at her, just staring at his shoes as he sat on the couch.

Starting to grow frustrated, Natasha tapped her foot for a few moments as she stood over him. "Wanda triggered the Hulk's rampage in Africa by showing you killing me, us, the Avengers, didn't she? Well, I don't care. The Hulk scares me, but he won't kill me!" she finally snapped. "I shoved you off a bloody cliff, and all he did to me was gave me a scare carrying me around! He fought side by side with us without so much as scratching us or the civilians. He has been since New York. He saved my life from Ultron when he was firing at us from the Quinjet! Instead of going right after Ultron, he took me all the way to the Helicarrier to make sure I was safe first! He—"

"It's not that!" Bruce roared, shaking with supressed fury. His eyes flashed green, before receding to normal.

She glanced at him in surprise, and he also seemed taken aback. While unsure of the reason, Natasha refused to lose the initiative, "Then what?" she said, not quite pleading, she still had her pride after all.

Bruce stared at her for a minute, with her patiently matching his gaze, before he collapsed back into the couch with exhaustion. At first he covered his face with his hands, yet in the end he looked back at her and stood up, knowing she deserved this.

"I saw you dead, yes. I don't know from what, and it didn't matter, outside of the fact it wasn't me. The others were dead too, but you were in the center and clearest. And that was when the Other Guy took over, and that was what I was forced to see. To _feel_. Not that he would hurt you guys, not seriously at least by this point, but what he would do, what _I_ would do, if I lost you, my friends, my, my family. But especially you." Bruce was the one pleading now, begging her to understand as he continued.

"I saw how my grief and anger at that loss would send the monster on a rampage that would never end so long as you were dead, and I was still alive. And no one was left to stop me.

"I tried to deny it, I really did. I meant what I said back at the farm. And when you pushed me over you made me accept reality." At this, the tears finally broke, though he never looked away from her, "That he would always be a part of me. That it was all a fantasy. Me having that kind of life we wanted."

Natasha just stared back in horror, "You were planning to run and lock your heart away, and never let yourself care for another person, ever again!?"

He nodded.

And she hit him. Hard.

 **XXX**

The New Avengers and various SHIELD personnel were waiting outside the room, brimming with impatience. Each of the latter had been cleared by Fury and Natasha over the last few days, mostly based upon their performance opposing HYDRA. Keeping a baby secret was a little harder than it sounded, especially when you were trying to find out where it came from. So they were made aware of Laura, who was also present in Clint's arms as he expertly fed her some more baby formula. Steve had argued that they would want to see their daughter as soon as possible, while Tony pointed out that in the worst case scenario they could cower behind the baby.

They were all mildly ashamed that they agreed with Iron Man's rational more than Captain America's.

After that loud yell of anger a minute ago, they had waited with baited breaths, until the silence was broken with a loud thump, followed by further sounds of…energetic action. The optimists were imaging a carnal make-up, while the pessimists were pressuring Steve to listen at the door. After all, he had excellent hearing, and of those assembled here, he was the one that the two of them together were the least likely to kill. Besides Clint of course, but he was holding the baby, who was looking like an increasingly attractive shield.

Finally, the man consented, and put his ear to the door of his two friends. While clearly embarrassed by this intrusion on their privacy, he still took it seriously and listened carefully. "Uhm…I think Romanoff's angry…?"

 **XXX**

 _At least she's not hitting me anymore_ , Bruce reassured himself as he tried to focus his dazed thoughts, _probably going to have a black eye though. Unless the Other Guy heals it_.

With a perfectly calm expression, the Black Widow was venting her rage by throwing things all over the room, while the scientist meekly stayed on the floor where he had fallen. He knew this was abnormal for her, _scarily_ abnormal, for she never let her emotions control her. She had as much self-control as Captain America for crying out loud!

Trying to distract himself, he tried to turn his attention towards the Other Guy's motivations and actions. Or rather, his completely atypical _inaction_.

The sudden fury he had felt when Natasha was actually defending the Other Guy should have triggered a stronger reaction for Bruce to supress, or when she hit him and went of an anger management fling – _Heh, fling, I've been corrupted by Tony_ — meant there should have been at least _some_ stirring. Fire should be burning through his veins, a rumbling storm in the back of his mind. Lesser things had triggered it all, yet this time: nothing!

Finally, she stopped and sat on the floor across from him, glaring.

"How does a nice girl like you end up in a place like this?" Bruce finally croaked out.

"Fella done me wrong," she bit out, "just after I finally accepted that maybe I could actually have some happiness in life, despite all that I've done, _he_ has a relapse and starts thinking again that he doesn't deserve to be happy! Worse, he decides to get a full-blown martyr complex, believing that if he is ever enjoys himself again, he'll kill everyone off!"

Bruce tried not to wince at her words or tone.

"But! The truth of the matter, is that he keeps running because he's so—"

Outside, Steve supressed a wince, and reminded himself that the baby could not hear the following curses in numerous languages. Not even during his time with the army, or with the Howling Commandos, had he heard such…diverse and…descriptive words.

"—ing scared! That he's unable to come to grips with being with other people anymore! That he imagines, what? That he'll 'break the world,' or some other nonsense!?"

Still no reply.

"You've spent so much time running because you'll afraid of hurting someone, that it's become all you know! It's a habit that you can't break! You've been running away from everything, holding onto a hope of having a real life again, and once you get the chance you're confused on how to react. You had weeks to come home, but you stayed away because that piece of you that's scared said it was for the best, like it would somehow help the people that care about you, dismissing how it would actually hurt them instead!"

Her voice grew louder and louder, and increasingly scathing, "And do you think so little of me? Do you think I have never given thought to it? That I never once weighed the consequences of being in love with you, and thought them paltry in comparison to the joy of being with you!? Yes, the Big Guy still scares me, but I can deal with that! I _have_ been!" She broke off there, afraid to say too much more, but then acknowledged she had to get it all out.

Calmly now, "When you asked me to run away with you, I was willing to deal with the Hulk for the rest of my life. I'm sorry I wasn't there for you enough to see how much mental trauma you were going through at the time. The pain that was pushing you away. I'm sorry that I let it get to the point that pushing you off a cliff and letting the Hulk out when it was the last thing you wanted was my best remaining option. But I would still have gone with you afterwards. Because really, the only question I've ever really had for you is if you can handle my own monster that lives inside of me: the killer."

She waited for him to respond, just staring at him with burning eyes, "I'm sorry I didn't come back sooner," he finally said sincerely, "I just…"

"I know. It's on me too though, I should have come looking for you sooner. I was afraid to learn that I'd actually ruined everything. And that's a mistake I'm not making again. Because I'm not letting you go that easily. I'm not letting you hurt yourself like that, forcing yourself to be alone. And deep inside, you know this. Tony says that the Hulk is your deepest part of you, embodying your need to protect yourself, yet both of you came back to fight alongside the Avengers, neither of you ran. The two of you have always come back to help others. Protect others. In New York and Sokovia. Your will to protect is greater than your need to destroy. Always.

"But most of all, you know this. Because you came back, to Laura and me. And if you do want to run again, we're coming with you."

He looks at her, looking into her eyes for any sign of disgust or fear, and he sees nothing. No rejection, only love and acceptance, and incredibly, faith. He sees Natasha's faith that Bruce deserves to be with Laura and her, and her belief that his greatest nightmare will remain an illusion. He thinks about how at the end of the day, even after she pushed him down that hole to brink the Other Guy out, he still trusts her. Unreservedly.

And he's happy with her.

He loves her.

And now they can have a family. A future.

With this realization, Bruce felt something shift within himself, and he felt he heard something. Not so much as words, but more a feeling, an emotion that somehow conveyed the intention behind it, _Stay_ , another voice seemed to say, _Can come home now. Know what you want now_. With this, Bruce's last reservations faded away.

Simultaneously they stand up, and embrace, reveling in the touch of each other.

"Sorry."

"Sorry."

"I love you."

"I love you."

They hug for an eternity and a day, until their rumbling stomachs bring them back to reality.

"We've got a ways to go still, like figuring out how to raise Laura, and where she came from, but as long as we're together, we can do it."

She chuckles, and rubs her face against his cheek, 'It's good to have you back, dork,' she says affectionately.

 **XXX**

Hand in hand, they opened the door and walked out.

And stopped in surprise. Standing in front of them, was Clint holding Laura, who was staring happily back at her parents. Yet behind them both, she could see everyone else standing oh-so-casually right behind the archer and baby.

"And what are you heroes up to?" Natasha dryly wondered aloud.

 **XXX**

Asgard

Loki, disguised as Odin, stared back in surprise at Heimdall after the god had requested his king's presence to deliver a report. After Thor had last returned from Midgard with revelations on the Infinity Stones, 'Odin' had ordered Heimdall to keep a loose eye on the Avengers.

Ostensibly, it was a way to show support for his 'son's' activities by helping make sure they were safe. Thor may have even realized it was a polite way to keep surveillance of the Vision and his Infinity Stone, despite Thor's assurance. In reality, it was also so that Loki could ensure the Avengers did not become a threat, and to see if they could be used for potential distractions to help keep Thor away from Asgard.

In seeking his 'father's' guidance, Thor had kept Loki well up to date on his progress, along with some additional, subtle observations. Whenever Thor appeared to be making progress in his search, the Trickster would divert his attention on some "mission for the Realms," such as raising Asgard's military might even further. This way, Loki could do his own quiet investigations to stay ahead of the trail, lest Thor make any unfortunate discoveries, such as Loki's past connections to Thanos. Given the Mad Titan's own interest in the artifacts, Loki knew that war was looming over the horizon…

For the present however, this recent report on the Avengers was seriously disturbing.

"It's true, my king. I was unable to see who had deposited the baby on the doorstep. It was only good fortune that I was checking up on the archer's newborn for your son at the time, and saw this other child suddenly appear."

Loki was too engaged in this mystery to think any comments about Odin and what offspring he did, and did not have. Heimdall's sight was incredible, as near to all-seeing as the Asgardians knew, keeping track of nine worlds, and ten trillion souls. His range even extended beyond the Nine Realms to the other empires of the stars. No one could oppose Asgard's might, for Heimdall knew everyone's secrets, or at least the ones of those with power. The only privacy most people had was to not be the focus of his attention at the time, but the man was always on vigil without rest, and was constantly looking for anything of note. For him to not know the cause of the child's sudden appearance, eliminated nearly all known forms of magic and technology, including all known forms of teleportation or dimensional travel. "Could they have been cloaked, like the Dark Elves? Dropping the child off and retreating hidden from your sight?"

Heimdall hesitated, "Truthfully, sire, I do not know. I delayed in informing you, because I hoped to find some further clue. The Avengers have confirmed the girl's heritage with their own sciences, which appear to be accurate to me, but have no further ideas either. I saw nothing out of the ordinary around the farm, and could not find any signs of the necessary facilities their discussion have hinted at on the planet."

Loki just nodded, fighting the urge to pace in an un-Odin like manner as he worked to piece together what he knew.

Artificially creating a child, even for a species as genetically simplistic as a human, should be beyond Midgard's scientific capabilities. It was definitely beyond their capabilities to hide from Heimdall's sight. The only reason it had ever worked in the past was because of the nature of the Infinity Stones, and there were none left on Earth. Very few individuals had the ability to hide any hint of themselves from Heimdall, and all of them were powers in their own right.

The most likely explanation was that one some foreign party had turned their attention towards Midgard for some unknown reason. While Loki was not personally opposed to someone causing trouble for the inhabitants, the fact remained that Midgard was of the Nine Realms, and these trespassers were thus acting in defiance of Asgard and its authority. Any intrusion into the Realms without Asgard's explicit approval was usually a death sentence.

What was worrisome was that while it was possible to hide from Heimdall's sight, when his attention was focused upon that specific location he would know that someone was trying to hide there. It was like hiding under a blanket that shone with the light of the Bifrost; no one knew what you were doing underneath, but everyone knew you were there if they looked in your direction. This limitation even applied to Thanos and his armies, or Lorelei during her brief stay on Midgard. The sole exceptions to this rule were high status members of the Nine Realms: Malekith of the Dark Elves and his elite guard; Loki himself; and Odin and Frigga. And even then it was no guarantee that Heimdall would be caught unaware; it was only Heimdall's deference to his king kept him from focusing his full attention on 'Odin.'

In this situation though, someone had dropped off a baby at the archer's farm without leaving a single clue, yet at the exact same time, Heimdall had been using all of his considerable power and experience to try and find one. After all, the guardian had known that someone was there, because a baby of all things had appeared out of nowhere, and Loki doubted that even he himself could pull off such a feat.

In pulling off a seemingly selfless act, someone had advertised that they possessed abilities that were worrisome to the extreme.

 _A mystery for Thor indeed, but strange enough that I need to keep a loose eye on it as well. Either this situation heralds an opportunity to expand my own abilities, and ensure that I can maintain this charade, or it may indicate that there is some new threat out there!_

Turning back to his loyal subject, " _Oh what sweet, delicious irony_ ," Loki ordered Heimdall to continue to keep a close eye on the situation, and to send for his king if any new developments occurred.

Turning around, Loki began to walk away, before Heimdall called out again. "My king? I just wished to say, the monument you are building for your wife, it is quite beautiful."

Pausing, and turning his head to look at Heimdall, Loki allowed genuine emotion to colour his voice, "Thank you. But in truth, it is still incomplete, for it still pales in comparison to her magnificence."

 **XXX**

 **Author Notes:**

 **For previous instances when non-Asgardian aliens have come to Earth, they did so when Heimdall's attention was elsewhere. Basically the 'radar' was looking at something else more important. They were lucky.**

 **I have to expand upon a point in that last section: there are no more Infinity Stones on Earth, and Loki is well aware of this, which is why he dismisses them as a possibility. Thor is currently on the trail of the one from Guardians of the Galaxy, and Loki's search of Odin's notes and other sources have given him enough of a lead on the others to be for him to be justifiably confident that another one will not be popping up on Midgard. As for the Scepter in Age of Ultron, Thor assumed that it was Loki's lingering magic that made it so that Heimdall could not locate it.**

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 **Recommend '** **Step By Step,' by** **Dinosaur-Ghosts**

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 **Next time: 'A Baby in the House'**

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 **Please Review!**


	6. A Baby in the House

For better or worse, Marvel owns all of this stuff, not me.

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Talking: "Avengers Assemble!"

Thinking: " _Where are the Avengers!?_ "

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Chapter 6: A Baby in the House

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 _Previously: The New Avengers were shocked when the biological daughter of Black Widow and the Hulk was dropped off at Hawkeye's secret home. Despite her initial surprise, Black Widow quickly took the baby, named Laura, into her life, and arranged for the Hulk to come home. Reunited as a couple, the two are now trying to raise their baby._

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Barton Farm

A few days later

Exhausted, Clint walked into his front door, overjoyed to see Laura and the kids waiting for him. "Guess what guys? Aunty Nat has a baby!"

During the ensuing garble of voices from his kids as they asked questions and speculated that the baby that had appeared on their doorstep was the same one, he noted the expressions crossing his wife's face. Predominantly he saw surprise and happiness, yet he could also see a warning that if he knew what was good for him, he had better start declassifying information. Fast.

"Alright, alright, settle down you guys. Yes, that is the same baby as the one that was left here earlier. Aunty Nat sort of lost her, but is overjoyed to have her back. The baby is called Laura like your mom, and the only time I've seen your Aunty happier is when she's here with you guys. Doctor Bruce Banner, the guy with glasses who was here recently? He's the father, and he's with Aunty Nat. You don't have to call him Uncle Bruce yet though. And no, they won't be coming over anytime soon. They feel it's best to stay where they are for now."

With some relief, the fearsome Hawkeye saw that his better half was satisfied, for now, and he quickly changed the subject to ask what his kids had been doing while he was gone, and trying to figure out some way to make up for taking so long to get back.

 **XXX**

Generic Shopping Mall

A discreetly dressed Sam Wilson walked into the bookstore. He took a moment to glance at some of the books on military action in the Middle East, before making his way to his destination: the baby aisle. " _All this different stuff on how to raise a baby?_ "

Shrugging his shoulders, the Falcon started making his way through them all; looking for what seemed the best, though he suspected that he would be buying several different books. He had some time at least, since Steve was busy getting all the baby toys and equipment. " _Mr. Super-soldier can lug all that stuff_ ," Sam thought with a small grin.

 **XXX**

New Avengers Facility

That night

Bruce and Natasha lay in the latter's bed, holding each other as they slept, reveling in each other's heartbeats. "Happy," was the best description for their resting faces, a description that neither would have felt possible before.

There were still some rough patches, yet the two of them were becoming ever closer as a couple.

It was not like their attraction was really physical either. After all the jobs Natasha had done in the past, sex was merely a tool for her, and another reminder of a life she was increasingly looking to put behind her. As for Bruce, control was paramount for him. Even now, it was possible that if he lost himself to passion he would unleash a monster upon the world. Oh sure, being close to each other, holding each other, still felt good, and kissing was fantastic, but it was all secondary.

After all, if she had been able to lead him away from Calcutta in the very beginning with nothing but a pretty dress and a few sultry words, their relationship would have probably developed far differently.

Then a scream rent the air, and the two of them shot upright to look at the struggling Laura as she cried her eyes out.

In a flash, Natasha was cradling their baby, while the significantly less fit scientist followed behind.

"Do you think she's having nightmares?" Bruce wondered as both parents worked to help Laura drift back to sleep.

"If she is, I'll have to find them and kill them all," Natasha replied with a sad smile.

Everything was getting better, yet the entire family was still having trouble sleeping through the night.

Not only did Laura keep waking up on her own, she was often awoken from her sleep when Bruce would bolt upright from the terrors his subconscious tortured him with, yelling in horror and terrifying the little girl. Natasha would then have to calm and reassure them both back to sleep. When the mom suffered her own nighttime trials, she was quieter, yet no less emotional. Her training and lifestyle did not permit her be shocked awake like her lover, yet Bruce was still being woken up as she hugged him like a vice to seek comfort.

The worst nights were when both parents had nightmares.

In the end though, being together under the light of the sun made it all worthwhile.

 **XXX**

Two days later

"Peekaboo!" Wanda cooed as she opened her hands to look at the grinning baby girl who was flailing her arms back at the young telepath.

"Peekaboo!"

"Peekaboo!"

"Peekaboo!"

By this point, Wanda was laughing along with Laura, enjoying the innocence of the situation.

"Peekaboo," another voice said quietly behind her, and recognition filled the Scarlet Witch, " _I don't deserve to be with his baby like this_ ," a traitorous voice whispered.

Reading her body language, Bruce quickly spoke up, "No, it's okay. I'm happy to see you with her while Natasha and I were busy." Then the part of him that merged scientist with proven survivor/runaway made a few more connections about the situation. " _If we're going to do this, it's best we do it here with Laura. She'll guilt trip us both into keeping it more civil_."

He walked forward and around so that the cradle was between them both, and looked into the eyes of the woman who had sent him on a rampage inside a populated city, and asked in a very passive and non-confrontational tone, "I'm sorry, but I'm curious. Ultron is dead, so why are you with the Avengers now?"

Wanda was surprised by the doctor's choice of topic, yet she had often thought about the subject, and had been questioned enough on it to readily answer.

"My brother and I were wrong. We saw the Avengers as further agents of aggression and greed, that you were Tony Stark's, the first one of you to go public, Stark's helpers in sucking the wealth and life out of this world under the guise of being 'heroes.' For the sake of our countrymen, for others in the world who were told had been orphaned by your activities, we chose to resist you. Heh, we wanted to show the 'Avengers' what it meant to fight people who had a real reason for vengeance.

"It was Captain America who changed our opinion of you all. After we learned what Ultron was planning, when we first worked together, to stop a runaway train, the Captain's first order was for Pietro to get the civilians in our path out of the way. His concern for other people continued afterwards while preparing for our final attack on Ultron. We saw how much he cared about even our countrymen, and that helped make us realize how wrong we had been."

Wanda declined to mention how she had also sampled some of Roger's thoughts at later dates, working to understand him as opposed to just yanking out his darkest fears. What she had seen there, how even in his most hidden depths Steve Rogers did not just talk the talk, but also walked the walk, that he truly believed in what he said, had convinced her to stay by him.

Bruce mulled this over for a few moments, and then nodded. "Okay, well then," and he stuck out his hand, "glad to know you're on the New Avengers!" he said with a smile.

Matching his grin, Wanda shook the man's hand, feeling the edge of his thoughts. There was still anger lurking there, yet also the willingness to let it go and to try and forgive her. In hindsight, she realized how much this man also appreciated the concept of second chances.

She also neglected to tell him how she had covertly used her powers to study the doctor's baby. The New Avengers were the closest thing she had to a family now, and she wanted to be sure they were safe. At the same time, she had no interest in being caught in the act by the same people who had already been tortured by her powers. " _I would probably 'disappear,' and either wake up outside the base with no memory of the last week, or never be heard from again. This would be a shame, since I actually like spending time with Romanoff, and I can understand why she would do that._ "

Yes, violating people's privacy like that would be frowned upon if anyone figured out how easily she could really do it, yet she was not going to stop anytime soon. She was a survivor who needed every edge. Not just for herself, but to also keep those around her alive.

Regardless, she had looked deep into the very depths of the baby's mind, looking for anything suspicious. Something that would indicate that there was something more, or less, than there should have been. And she found…

Nothing.

Nothing unusual.

Nothing but the beautifully glowing mind of a healthy baby.

Wanda was not sure about the belief that some people could just be born evil, for she had yet to meet a baby who was not born as a good soul in the beginning. And Laura was pure throughout.

 **XXX**

Later

Natasha was in the New Avenger's special lounge, along with most of the team, Nick Fury and Maria Hill, and of course Laura. The little darling was showing off to everyone her seemingly inexhaustible energy as she was giggling and rolling around after playing with her toys a little bit. Natasha had even joked that instead of studying gamma radiation, Bruce should have studied "baby energy." Bruce had taken the joke well, showing he was slowly improving, and had responded that then the Hulk would have been truly unstoppable, and that he would have taken all of the candy in the world.

Seeing Laura calming down a little, Natasha cleared her throat to get everyone's attention. "I'm still trying to get used to this," she said with a little embarrassment as she looked at them all, 'motherhood,' she clarified. "I mean, there's still so much to think about. Like what's she going to become when she gets older. Besides a SHIELD agent or Avenger of course; she's not getting into either of those lives."

Steve just beamed one of his patented smiles at her, "Natasha, we all get why you would be concerned about her sharing the same dangers we all face, but remember, you can't expect to control your daughter's life like that. Especially if she grows up as independent as you."

"You misunderstand me," Natasha responded softly, and something about it sent off warning bells in Steve's head, especially as the tone subtly become darker the more she talked, "I know I can't dictate what she'll do, but I can do something about the people would be accepting her for such positions. So I'm telling you Steve, because you'll be around for another century, and you, Boss, and you can pass it on to whomever needs to know."

Natasha's expression didn't change…but suddenly everyone saw how they could die in the next few seconds.

They realized how easily the woman could suddenly draw a concealed gun and kill them all with headshots, starting with Captain America. An EMP grenade would suffice for Vision, which they all believed she carried.

That wondered if she had entered the lounge before them and planted bombs under their seats, before doubling back.

What were the odds that their drinks were poisoned, and she knew where the only antidote was?

They remembered how quickly she could close with them all with her custom tasers, or knives.

The motherly scene had dissolved, and they all remembered they were in the presence of a master killer, one who was now laying down the law where her daughter was concerned.

"If Laura is accepted in either SHIELD or the Avengers or something similar, I'll—"

 **XXX**

Wanda Maximoff was just walking by when she her specials senses told her _something_ was going on in the room.

With a flicker of her will, the door to the room slammed open and she stalked in, ablaze with red power, ready to defend her teammates from the threat she had detected. Then she took in the room, got a read of the mood, and started to process the conversation that Romanoff had continued without pause, in her cold, black voice.

"—and after I'm done working on your ears and eyes, I'll go back down and start again with—"

With another thought, the door slammed shut and Wanda continued on her way without any more involvement in the discussion. She had enough nightmares already, thankyouverymuch.

 **XXX**

Thirty minutes later

Bruce was humming a little as he entered the lounge, reading the information on the tablet in front of him. He was working to still stay active even when raising Laura, and also felt he should do something to "earn his keep" while he stayed at the facility.

Currently, he was researching how to make the application of bio-mechanical cybernetic prosthetics easier for patients. Ideally, he could even get it to the point where doctors could just slap the metal replacements on, and the new limb would be fully integrated with the remaining nerves and be operational almost instantly. SHIELD had records of others doing similar things, yet the scientific details on how this had been done were incomplete. Based on those same reports, it would also be appreciated if the pain factor during the process could be mitigated a little bit.

Bruce was also doing it to help Steve's friend, Bucky. Losing his present HYDRA metal arm and exchanging it for a Luke Skywalker-style flesh covered prosthetic should help in the man's mental recovery. If they ever found the man that is. Regardless, Steve was a good friend, so Bruce was willing to get to know Bucky and help the man out.

The other main requirement for Bruce's work besides ease of use though, was a personal desire: he wanted his developments to also be affordable and accessible. Giving SHIELD agents weaponized arms that could fire missiles was all well and good, yet what about all those children living in countries infested with landmines? There were countless children who had endured their legs being blown off, and were forced to cope with cruder mechanical prosthetics, or even just crutches! At the exact same time, Fury would be leery about releasing schematics to little children in developing countries, when angry adults might try to weaponize the designs. The delicate design balance was proving to be challenging, yet Bruce was confident that enough time, coffee, and genius would solve the problem.

" _And I thought I'd promised myself I wouldn't ever get involved again with military contracts…_ " he thought with a touch of irony.

Glancing up, he saw Nat playing with some toys with a giggling Laura. Some other people were watching too, like Fury and Steve, though for some reason they all seemed strangely stiff. "What's up?"

"Oh, we were just talking about what Laura might choose to be as she grows up. They didn't like how dismissive I was of their own careers."

" _Those don't seem like the reactions of disappointed men. At the same time, I think I'll just leave this to Nat mostly. I'll probably do the same when Laura starts dating boys. Or girls for that matter_." Deciding he should probably say something, Bruce chose a safer conversation, "So what do you think she'll grow up to be?"

"Maybe she'll grow up to be a doctor, like her daddy?"

"Which type?" he responded with self-deprecating humour, "will she heal people and get an actual medical degree, or just a doctor of nuclear physics and biochemistry like I was before?"

"All that matters is that she's happy. It's all up to her after all."

 **XXX**

Later

"Captain Rogers?"

Steve looked up from his intelligence briefing on some terrorist group to see Vision standing in front of his desk.

"I've told you Vision, you can call me Steve when we're on downtime."

"I know, yet given the circumstances, I want to keep this more professional."

Straightening up, Captain America gestured to the guest chair, "Oh?"

"It concerns Laura. Or more specifically, I am worried how people might refer to her or me as a 'non-person.' That because we were born in a lab, as seems to be the consensus with her at least, that we do not have souls, or rights."

Steve blinked once, and processed the implications. Vision was a teammate and a friend, so of course he would have Captain America beside him and supporting him. Moreover, while growing up, Steve had seen far too much ridiculous bigotry against people who were different. Heck, if those kind of people had their way, the Howling Commandos would have been just white, English speaking men, and Peggy would have been back home helping in the factories. Unlike Vision though, Laura could not defend herself, only her parents could. And the less those two got involved the better. " _Still it's heartwarming to see how much they love her. And despite what Natasha threatened me and the others with, I know she's doing it out of love for her baby, wanting to keep her safe from the lives we endure. So no reason to take it personally_."

Captain America took a quick glance at his schedule to confirm there was nothing else planned for the next few hours that he would have to cancel, and turned back to the android. "I assume you have already gathered some starting materials for us to address this issue?"

"Of course," and Vision pulled out a thick file from under his cloak, while a stray thought returned to his artificial mind, " _Where does Laura fit into the future? Her origins are a mystery, and her arrival was the catalyst for the return of one of the most powerful Avengers._ "

 **XXX**

Later that evening

Bruce's laughter cut across the quiet night.

Rolling over in bed so that she was looking at him, Natasha could see he was staring at the cradle and Laura's sleeping form while inexplicably doubled over laughing.

Intrigued, she put down her spy novel and the pen she was using to mark down errors or better ways to do things, she nudged her boyfriend-not-lover with her foot. "What?"

He gestured at Laura, "I was just thinking about the worst question a parent wants to hear, and how we can give her an honest answer!"

"What?" she repeated, albeit with some confusion as she tried to figure out the question.

"Nat, how are babies made?"

"Sex," she deadpanned before she caught it and started laughing too. "B-but we've never done it!" she choked out.

"Yes!" he barked with humour. "We can honestly tell her that Uncle Clint just dropped her off!"

"Or when she's older I can tell her how easy it was, delivering her as a baby!"

"Those poor other mothers!"

When their happiness woke Laura up, the little angel joined in too, adding her own musical giggles, and they both knew that life was good.

 **XXX**

Stark Tower, formerly the Avengers Tower

(Though the Avengers all have an open invitation)

Shaking his head, Tony Stark turned away from the computer screen. Every test he had run on Laura Romanoff-Banner gave the same results: nothing. Nothing to explain how she could possibly exist. To all appearances, no matter what test he ran, she was just a perfectly average baby girl.

She was not even so normal that it was actually suspicious; intensive DNA analysis even hinted she might develop a slight peanut allergy when she got older. Personally Tony had felt it was suspicious that the kid would only sleep a bit during the day, yet still keep her parents up late at night crying, requiring constant supervision. The amount she drooled on adult's clothes was also insidious. It was especially noteworthy how calm and composed she could be during serious situations (she had stared down the %^&* Hulk for crying out loud!), which was interesting when you remembered how her parents had spent a lifetime earning the self-discipline they displayed.

He was alone in this though, with the others saying that it was not as unusual as he thought, and provided examples from accredited sources about babies to support it. Even Fury just rolled his eye about the drooling part, and said that even the baby's apparent self-control would probably just fade into an amusing anecdote once she grew up and changed.

" _Alright, gotta take my mind off this. Come back at it later. Fury'll be doing his own work anyways, and have that kid under constant supervision_."

Moving the holographic screen about Laura off to the side, just enough in his line of sight so that it might trigger a future flash of pure genius, Tony told FRIDAY to bring up a different topic that had been on his mind lately.

Time passed freely, and he was about to call it a day, when something caught his eye, "Now wait a minute, that…doesn't…look…right…?"

 **XXX**

 **Author Notes:**

 **In all honesty, there are more than a few fics out there now that discuss Bruce and Natasha's feelings for each other, and how they get back together. Not that I am complaining of course :-) Now though, I am branching out into my own unique storyline. On that note, special thanks to Lu4409 for both his fic, 'A Bigger Universe,' and some ideas we have PMed with each other. They really helped me expand my ideas. Other suggestions are always welcome of course, because I know how many brilliant people there are out there :-)**

 **Alright, enough shameless flattery.**

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 **Other Recommended fics:**

 **'** **Nachalo** **,' by XxthesarcasticonexX**

 **'All The Leaves Are Brown (And the sky is gray)' by** **AvocadoLove**

 **'Syrgja' by Lady Charity**

 **'Compromised (the art of being unmade)' by foolondahill17**

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 **Thanks again for everyone's support!**

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 **Next time: 'Make Peace, Not War,' with the first hints of the Superhero Registration Act!**

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 **Please Review!**


	7. Make Peace, Not War

For better or worse, Marvel owns all of this stuff, not me.

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Many thanks to my wonderful Beta, AutumnFroste, who writes some pretty cool stories. Go read them!

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Chapter 7: Make Peace, Not War

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 _"I saw it as clear as day. I saw us. At war. It had never occurred to me before that **very** moment. But right then, I knew we were going to war. We're warriors, with weapons and ideals and things to fight for—things worth **dying** for. It's **who** we are, it's our defining characteristic. We **fight**. The Avengers avenge, X-men defend, the Fantastic Four explore. But we **all** fight. At first I thought **we'd** be fighting a war against evil. But that's just that holier-than-thou attitude that **we're** always the good guys and all **we** fight is bad guys. But in a **war** there **are** no good guys and there **are** no bad guys…There're opposing forces. A war was coming…I saw us fighting each other." _

–Tony Stark, "Civil War: The Confession," by Brian Michael Bendis

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New Avengers Facility

Days later

"What're you doing?"

"Looking up stuff from previous SHIELD agents," Natasha answered her boyfriend. "Most of them basically had to give up on the whole family life for this, but some still managed to make it happen."

Bruce nodded at that, Barton was a perfect example of that, though he had buried his secret deep. "To help make sure Laura gets a semi-normal life?"

"Yes and no. She'll get the life I never got." She pointedly made no mention of Bruce's own sorry childhood, which he appreciated, and given how people would assume that Laura would be groomed to be a superhero in turn, the Red Room was a far better example. "But she'll also have to grow up able to protect herself. Other parents relied on secrecy or their own personal efforts, but I'm not taking chances. Not with our lifestyles and history."

While a little uncomfortable with raising his daughter to be a trained fighter, Bruce had to concede she had a good point. Also, "And she'll have to know who the Avengers are," he added as if it were obvious.

Seeing her raised eyebrow at his comment, he elaborated, "I doubt you or I will be able to get out of this life too easily. And I want them to know who she is and care about her. So that the most powerful heroes will want her happy and safe."

For a moment Natasha thought Bruce had been hanging around her too much, that he was planning to influence the Avengers to be another set of security for their daughter, before she remembered how he had been hacking some of SHIELD's files and what he had been reading, and then connected the dots.

"You're worried about the Sokovia Accords, or the Superhero Registration Act as they're also calling it."

Bruce might not be much of a sociologist, and contrary Tony's attempts he was no psychologist. He _was_ however a good hacker, _especially_ when helping Natasha who was a master hacker. A witch really. Moreover, while Natasha was no ivory tower academic, the Red Room had still taught her a lot about predicting people's motives and actions, finding the patterns in their behaviours.

Ever since she had discovered that the organizations that she had served so loyally was so irredeemably diseased that only indiscriminately cutting off large pieces of flesh could save what the body represented, and HYDRA's connections to the KGB and thus the Red Room, Natasha had chosen to be more…proactive in identifying threats as opposed to waiting around for orders. Her extensively trained paranoia had also escalated, especially now that it was not just her life she was concerned about. With Steve acting as her guiding compass she had still been discrete, but with Bruce to help her and fearing for their daughter's safety, she had taken to hacking into various government databases. What they had found there had led them to broaden their searches to what sociologists, respected psychologists, political analysists were publicly saying, and what they were covertly advising various officials and intelligence agencies.

Conclusion: various powerful individuals were afraid of those whose power came not from wealth, connections, or the ability to manipulate public perception or the bureaucracy. Those who had the ability to singlehandedly level military bases, undermine nations, and go toe-to-toe with entire armies. At the moment the only ones who could do that were members of the Avengers, but it was clear that the number of those with special abilities were growing, especially given what Natasha had managed to sniff out from SHIELD.

Solution: ask, cajole, or outright conscript those with powers to serve their nations, or the United Nations in the name of appeasing the masses. And there was a growing momentum, albeit still a slow one, towards starting with the Avengers.

"We've still got some time before it'll become a problem," Bruce tried to reassure her, knowing he was fooling no one, "especially if we can prevent another public incident," although they would be fools to depend on that, "but yes, I'm worried about how it will divide us."

For the Avengers and SHIELD were already aware of the threat posed by Registration, and were carefully working to avert it. What the more forward thinking behavioural analysts were concerned about though was: What would happen after Registration was implemented? Which heroes would obey and register for the Sokovia Accords, and which ones would choose to be vigilantes? Criminals? A minority even predicted a conflict between the heroes who refused government oversight, and those that were inevitable ordered to arrest their former teammates since no ordinary law enforcement agents could hope to succeed. For evidence they pointed out to instances where Stark had displayed symptoms of ongoing and untreated PTSD while in public.

Natasha and Bruce might not be trained to see the big picture, but they knew the Avengers, and with the details they had picked up from all the readings, and their own personal knowledge, they had reached their own horrible conclusion that a lines would be drawn between members as they chose to register or not if the Accords were ever put into practice. And with emotional and erratic personalities like Tony's, or Steve's refusal to compromise in any way, it might not even take governmental pressure for relationships to turn tense. If something unforeseen happened, and it would, it could easily turn to violence.

[Flashback]

 _"Do you really think it could come to this?" Natasha whispered as she re-read the report from a particular analyst. His superiors had dismissed the man's findings as being too unreasonable even for their own suspicious minds, but the Black Widow kept coming back to it._

 _Lifting his face from where it had been buried in his hands, Bruce forced himself to look her in the eye, "Nat, you weren't there when Vision was born, so to speak, yet right beforehand we were all fighting each other. It wasn't Tony or Steve, but Iron Man versus Captain America. We had reached a dispute on something serious, lives were hanging in the balance, no one was willing to back down, and the next thing we know we were at each other's throats." He waved his hand in irritation, "Oh sure, it was a bit more complicated than that, but the fact was that in a span of a few days, the_ _Avengers had gone from joking around about Thor's hammer to trying to kill each other."_

 _Leaning back, Natasha closed her eyes, "Tony's too arrogant and increasingly unstable the longer he refuses to actually address his issues, and sorry, I know he's your friend but you know it's true, and as much as I respect him, Steve won't back down if he feels the Accords are the wrong thing to do, too prideful even at times. It might not even take governmental pressure for things to get tense between them while pulling the rest of us in, not to mention Thor's response when or if he returns from being Prince of Asgard. Add in the possibility of someone else with powers causing trouble by stirring up emotions and causing violence…"_

 _"…and we've got a recipe for disaster," Bruce finished, "with our friends going for their throats and pulling more and more people in along with them."_

[Flashback End]

Stooping down, Bruce picked Laura up and started to bounce her up and down in his arms, "We don't even know if it'll stay at dividing into just two sides, it could fragment into several different groups, each with members with powers and skills others can't handle." He was silent for a moment, "Way back when we met Loki, I said we were all a time bomb, like it was only a matter of _when_ and not _if_ we self-destructed and hurt those around us. Too many competing egos and other issues."  
Natasha stayed silent, knowing that he would not bring up that horrid day without good reason, and her faith in him was rewarded when he looked back up and she saw the dork she loved so much back in his eyes, "But we can't let that happen."

Rising with a feline grace that would have any other man panting, Natasha stalked over and planted a light kiss on his lips, "For Laura's sake. But also because our friends, our family, doesn't deserve that."

"Yes."

"And based on what you said earlier, you're planning to shove an adorable little girl into their faces whenever they get upset? To help keep the peace?"

"Something like that," he smiled at her teasing, but he knew her brilliant mind was already coldly and logically working through it all, and she was not disagreeing with him.

 _It could work_ , Natasha conceded to herself, not even realizing how her thoughts and priorities had grown and changed over the years, and for an instant, a scene popped into Natasha's head:

 _Tony and Steve yelling at each other across a conference room, both of them backed up by officials and spokespersons on either side. And then a sharp voice cutting them off, and making them turn to the man at the head of the table. A frowning Bruce was holding an upset Laura, and telling them to calm it down._

 _The green stick, holding the angelic carrot, as he reminded them both what they were all really fighting for._

Suppressing the urge to smirk, she grimly also had to acknowledging the dangers of Bruce, the Hulk, seeming to take a side. The power he controlled could easily escalate the situation, especially since the only means to guarantee victory for the other side would be a pre-emptive strike to take him out of the fight, and that would only set everyone off. _And I very well might end up killing someone then,_ she thought with no small amount of concern. She did not want to have to explain to Laura what had happened to one of her "aunts" and "uncles," or worse, lie to her daughter.

"If fighting does break out," she said aloud, "nowhere will be safe for Laura. Not just from people trying to use her to control us," Natasha gave no response when Bruce's eyes flashed green for a moment, for the Black Widow was in agreement, "but also because if the enhanced start fighting it out who knows how destructive it'll be? So we have to keep it from breaking out, by keeping them from wanting to actually beat each other senseless. Or worse."

All her friends were fighters, and ready and willing to solve problems that way. Yes they were friends, family, but all too ready to resort to their firsts when tension still broke out between them. After her talk with Bruce about the fight over activating Vision or not, Natasha had discreetly hacked FRIDAY to pull up the footage of the fight, to watch Steve and Tony at each other's throats with everything they had. It was a miracle that neither of them had hurt each other, or worse, killed a brother-in-arms. That would have destroyed the Avengers. It may be time for her and Bruce to step forward, because now they had a future to protect, even if he was always afraid to fight for fear of breaking world if he went too far.

 _People on base gossip about the two of us,_ Natasha reflected, _saying that I've seduced the most powerful Avenger to control and dominate him, and how Bruce must like it. Those fools just don't really see him. His strength and will. The only real difference between him and me is that he's quieter about it, yet no less unyielding when necessary._

 _It's typical really. People like Stark might ridicule Bruce for being so non-confrontational, yet that is what I love about him. He's already working to find a way so that a fight's unnecessary. Looking for a path that will save us all._

 _For if a conflict does break out amongst the heroes, we will be forced to take action. Because at the moment, no matter who 'wins' a hero civil war, Laura will lose_.

Natasha could consider many, many possible outcomes of such a conflict, and none of them would build a world she wanted her daughter to grow up in.

This was not a problem she could solve with her usual skills either, since it was so far reaching that murdering a bunch of people would likely make the situation worse, and the Sokovian Accords did highlight some genuine and serious concerns.

"…But if fighting does break out," Bruce repeated, "we have to keep it contained and on a small scale. If we cannot delay the passing of the legislation, then we sabotage both sides to keep them from trying to kill each other. And if they do get into a conflict, we attack both sides to keep them apart. We don't let it build to a powder keg, or failing that we keep it from all boiling over. Because once someone dies…"

"…There's no going back. But do you really think it could end up being a throw down between two different sides, two different armies, in the streets of New York?"

"Stranger things have literally happened in our lives."

"There are so many ways that what we're planning," saying 'we' not 'you' to make her support clear, "could backfire on us," Natasha calmly points out.

He nods in agreement, "Yes, but our objective is buy time. Time to find another solution, a lasting one. Heck, we could even find a way to make the legislation work for everyone."

No words are exchanged, yet the hug and kiss they share is an oath in itself.

 **XXX**

Nick Fury sat alone in his office, pondering. Bruce Banner was a wild card, and a powerful one. The only bigger one was Asgard itself, with its unknown number of warrior _gods_. Having the Hulk as a player itself could be dangerous, since whichever side did not have him would see it as an escalation. By the same token, he could not risk the good doctor being seduced or coerced by some other faction.

And there would be factions and conflict in the future over the fate of the New Avengers. If not over the Superhero Registration Act, a.k.a. the Sokovian Accords, that his sources and SHIELD analysts were certain was going to be implemented in the not too distant future, then something else. The only reason they had that long was because of how much good the Avengers had still done for the world, and how there was enough public opposition of the various governments having so much control over powered individuals. Discrete allusions to how it would be too similar to SHIELD when it was under HYDRA's control, courtesy of still-active SHIELD agents, had helped there.

It was thanks to work like this that even more extreme measures were being dismissed: like reusing HYDRA's Eye Implants to monitor and coerce super-powered victims via a bomb in their head. Or mandatory genetic testing of the entire population to identify children who could potentially have powers so that they could be raised (indoctrinated) and trained (warped) by the government. There were also suggestions about reapplying some of the inventions from Project: Insight, by using satellites to detect someone based on their DNA and monitor them for further action.

Before the Avengers, before New York, SHIELD had worked covertly to keep the enhanced or empowered as just urban legends, and had carefully recruited or kept under surveillance anyone with unique skills. These days, a teenage hacker with a laptop could be just as dangerous as a man who could make and control small fires.

Fury _had_ briefly considered staging an event so that the newest version of the Avengers could come out as heroes against some made-up 'threat' and thus order to restore their reputations, yet he had quickly dismissed it. It was too cliché for someone to not suspect it (and Fury hated using clichés), and the consequences of it backfiring were too severe. Above all else, the Avengers had to stay in the clear, and such an event could ruin the dream, forever. Plus, the team had a bright bunch, and could figure it out and ruin it all themselves.

Ultimately though, what had Fury concerned was not the government, but how the empowered community would react, especially the Avengers.

 _Loki came down to Earth, calling us ants to which he felt no qualms about stepping on, and openly declared his intent to rule over us all. Ultron proved himself to be insane from the start, planning to murder them, and cause untold death and destruction. And yet_ still _their internal strife nearly tore them all apart! I had to put on an act about Coulson and then later give them a pep talk to kick their rears into gear. Sure, they did well against HYDRA, yet being able to agree to unite against a Nazis cult isn't something to be especially proud of._

 _So the question is: what will they do when a genuinely controversial issue pops up? And not just the Avengers, but even all those other heroes that are crawling out of the woodwork to follow their example? And if one side gets the Hulk, that side could come out on top merely by punching the others down_.

Fury sighed, and rubbed his forehead as he thought of options. Ideally, Romanoff would manipulate the scientist into staying with her, and then Fury would make sure the man kept a low profile.

 _Either way, a low profile seems best. We've already got people working to make sure that arrest warrant for him after Johannesburg, Africa has been dropped, and given enough time something positive might outweigh it. Helping stop Ultron and saving the Sokovians with the rest of the Avengers was definitely helping there._

 _If Banner stays out of sight until an appropriate, carefully controlled time, or a serious emergency, it might work out okay. Maybe we could claim that he's still in hiding out in the some slum, only emerging when the world was in greatest need?_

 _Unfortunately, getting Romanoff to use Banner as a pawn like that is no longer feasible, since SHIELD isn't the sole focus of her loyalty anymore, because Hawkeye and I aren't the ones she feel most attached too. The Avengers and especially Rogers have become that too, even though the Bartons were always first and foremost. Now though, Laura Fury –who named her that!?— is her most precious person, with Bruce being right behind. Maybe the Red Room was onto somet—_

Fury ruthlessly gutted that thought, refusing to give any praise to that sick organization, the man who saw Romanoff and the Bartons as family shoving aside the part of him that was angry at how a formerly reliable asset had been compromised.

 _Her highest priority right now is her baby, and that is how it should be,_ he grimly rebuked himself. _Depending how things turn out, then for better or worse, in any future global conflicts, Romanoff would either stay neutral or follow Captain Rogers. She'll trust him to choose the path that will give her daughter the kind of world she wants Laura to grow up in._ Fury stopped and thought about it some more, _She might side with Registration if she thought it was the best way to keep the Avengers, her family, together, but given his guilt complex it'll probably be Stark who's supporting that and she doesn't trust him enough. Given her relationship with Banner right now and his own experience…no, she'll likely side with Rogers._ _In turn, Banner would either stay behind to keep their daughter safe, or follow his girlfriend_.

Regardless, there was no one available that Banner was close to that Fury could count on to influence the doctor's actions. So for now, he would just let things play out, hope for the best, and do what he could to keep Banner safely in a lab with his daughter. Behind lots of guards and counter-espionage to keep other people from learning what was going on.

 _And keep him far, far,_ far _away from Stark and his own mad scientist ideas!_

 **XXX**

New Avengers Facility

Steve Rogers stood outside watching the bucketing rain while staying dry underneath a tree. _An unfortunate metaphor_ , he mused, _already pouring with hints of a storm to come_.

After the chaos with SHIELD, he had sworn to do his best to not be caught just reacting to whatever the higher ups decided to do to try and "fix" the world. Tony going behind his back with Ultron and then Vision had merely strengthened the need to be vigilant.

 _Bucky's still out there and I'm no closer to finding him, and I'm kept busy remaking the Avengers into something that won't scare governments anymore, while simultaneously making sure we don't lose our rights and freedoms. A lot of people are still afraid, especially those who are used to being in charge, and they'll want to control what makes them afraid, in the name of 'security.' And what Bruce's gone through proves the threat exists: because of the Hulk he was stripped of all his rights and forced to flee his own country, pursued by frankly criminally negligent military strikes in high civilian locations. Attacking him on two different university campuses, really?_

 _I won't back down or surrender my rights, or let others lose theirs, because of what people order me to do, or take it from others. I wouldn't have done it back in Boston, or later during the War, and I won't now. Like Benjamen Franklin said: 'They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety.'_

 _But that doesn't mean I won't fight this smart. This isn't some grand Nazis conspiracy that I can punch away; many of these people I will have to deal with are citizens who have honest concerns about heroes. Especially after Africa. Unfortunately, they're still acting out of fear._

 _For starters, we have to maintain the public's trust in us, and carefully train future heroes, with the Avengers setting an example for others to follow, and making sure that new ones are really ready for all of this. After that, I'll work it out._

 **XXX**

Unknown Location

"So what are your thoughts?"

"It's still too early to tell, but it definitely looks like it will be split between Iron Man and Captain America."

"Honestly? I have serious issues about either one."

"Oh? I can see why you would be concerned about Captain America. That he lacks that moral courage to do what's necessary."

"Yes, but I find myself caught between extremes, since Iron Man is actually too willing."

"…" the silence seems to convey a rebuke.

"Sorry. Rather, he does so with too little forethought. He could have handled going after those terrorists in the beginning another way, one that did not involve a loud, red and gold suit of armour for everyone to see, and he failed to see the ramifications about going public about being Iron Man. Still too much ego. Granted, as expected he has made many essential advances in weapons development and science in general, but this recent debacle with Ultron and Vision shows how he can be too much of a mad scientist."

"…" now the silence almost seems amused.

"…Alright, and I disagree with having more than one mad scientist running around with this."

" _That_ makes more sense. Captain America is also the better leader and strategist. More importantly, he can inspire people. Mobilize the enhanced and masses. That may end up being as important as weapons development by the time this is done."

"Hmph, possibly. For a little longer though, we'll just keep watching and determine which side we want to win with the Registration Act and the upcoming civil war."

"And keep an eye out for any other groups with their own ideas or solutions. No need to complicate the situation. We're fortunate Rogers' work with the New Avengers is kindly making it easier for us to buy enough time to help set the stage just right."

"Speaking of which, I found someone else who might cause the legislation forward earlier than we want."

"Alright, I'll take care of them. This the dossier? …Hmm, going to be tricky keeping this one quiet, but alright."

 **XXX**

New Avengers Facility

"Don't worry, Laura," Natasha murmured down to her little sleeping girl, while hugging Bruce tightly at her side, "you'll get the future you deserve. You, and Cooper, and Lila, and baby Nat. We won't let your family destroy itself."

 **XXX**

Stark Tower

Frantically, Tony Stark worked away at the information in front of him, trying feverishly to disprove his suspicions. All concerns about Laura had been forgotten days ago as he consumed himself with this task.  
Tony liked to praise himself about his ability to see the big picture, even though people like Pepper, Happy, or Rhodey said it made him lose track of the smaller things that made all the difference. Right now though, the portrait that was being drawn before him was a nightmare, with countless, terrible implications.

Or maybe just one single image, painted with a green brush.

 **XXX**

 **Author Notes:**

 **Regarding the above quote, I still think Tony Stark went about the issue wrong. As for the part at the end of the Captain America scene, what bugs me about the living symbol of freedom and liberty in the comics, is that whenever a controversial issue comes about, he is always stuck reacting just as things heat up. No apparent preparation or staying aware of what was happening in the world. He had no idea about the Superhuman Registration Act, and unlike the Illuminati had the rep to maybe avert it beforehand if he had some forewarning, or find a balance that satisfied everyone and addressed some genuine concerns. Same with Avengers vs. X-men, the mutants were not willing to listen to Steve Rogers because they had endured years and years of persecution with millions of their own kind dead while the Avengers seemingly did nothing.**

 **I admit that this is an oversimplification, and I should probably read more before saying that, yet after the Winter Soldier film, I think the cinematic version would be working to be more aware of what was coming.**

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 **Originally written well before Captain America: Civil War, but later edited for grammar and other issues, with references to the film added in.**

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 **Recommended reading:**

 **"Manners," by Moore12**

 **"Pack Your Bags, Romanoff," by Sheytune**

 **"Auntie Natasha," by** **Liliththestormgoddess**

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 **Next chapter: "Visions of the Future"**

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 **Previous Reviews:**

 **Guest:** No! Not Civil War! That'll ruin everything! I like the Avengers in this story. You can't just turn them against each other, and have them go all Hunger Games!

 _First, I LOVE your Hunger Games analogy for the Civil War, the accuracy of that says a lot about the comic Avengers. Second, extra thanks for that comment since it sparked a few new ideas for this chapter and later story. Third, I am hoping that this chapter will keep your interest in place, for Laura has turned things around a bit. Fourth, I am glad you have been enjoying this story, and I plan to make it so that you can continue to do so._

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 **Thanks for reading!**

 **Please Review!**


	8. Visions of the Future

For better or worse, Marvel owns all of this stuff, not me.

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Chapter 8: Visions of the Future

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 **This is one of the most significant chapters for the story, so I'm interested in what you think, though you will not find out why until the bottom.**

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 _Previously: Concerned about the possibility of a superhero civil war over the upcoming Superhero Registration Act, both Natasha and Bruce vowed to act as a third party to delay such an outbreak, and to intervene against both those for and against the legislation._

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Some foreign country

The Scarlet Witch and the Black Widow fluidly moved through the terrorist camp. What the former lacked in stealth, she made up for by using her telepathic powers to make sure no one noticed her. Romanoff was the one responsible for all the electronic surveillance, and threading as discreet a path through the base as possible.

Truthfully, these terrorists were a bit of small fry for the New Avengers, yet Natasha had argued that Wanda needed some more field experience using stealth. The duo's mission was to locate the hostages without raising an alarm, and then assess their condition. Ideally, the Witch would stand guard while Widow backtracked to a computer room they had noticed, and hack their files. Afterwards, they would silently lead the liberated men and women out of the base. Failing that, they would fall back on one of Captain America's numerous contingency plans for extraction and support. After all, Vision needed some more practice in incapacitating enemies without killing them.

Overall though, it was a nice little piece of womanly bonding. The both agreed it was much better than shoe shopping.

 **XXX**

A little later, temporary Avengers field camp in that same foreign country

Afterwards, Captain America was enjoying a nice mug of coffee as he read Romanoff's mission report. Everything had gone well, and they had provided NATO with a lot of prisoners and intelligence. _Nice to see Maximoff using her skills to take these guys down from inside instead of us. She's doing a fantastic job, really. Although we've still got to train her more and have to keep carefully planning things out of course, since she no longer has her brother for back-up. Hmm, also got to thank Fury for leaving behind those ICER guns. Their tranquilizer rounds are the best I've ever seen, both more powerful and more reliable than anything else I ever saw with SHIELD before_.

Consequently, hardly anyone had died today, and then it had only been some of the terrorists, and even then mostly from their own friendly fire. It was quite sad with some of them, how they had not known what they were really getting into. _Maybe Maximoff should have a talk with some of them, shared life experiences and all that, volunteering to help extremists and then learning what it really means. As for the real true believers and lost causes, I just wish we still had some SHIELD interrogators, or those agents who were good at getting people to defect_.

The lack of desired personal was because once the New Avengers Facility had been completed and all the new recruits now managing the place had been carefully vetted. _Having a telepath and an android with a built in lie detector, so useful_. The surviving SHIELD agents had disappeared back into woodworks once various governments had started to realize their presence with the New Avengers. Most of them had already been gone once Banner had settled in, and now only Maria Hill was left as a liaison, along with those unwilling to drop off the map.

The former Deputy Director and the others were safe because they were still technically employees of Stark Industries, and were therefore backed up by Tony Stark's impressive army of lawyers. It was not an idle threat either, Stark's employees were very loyal to both Stark and the present CEO Pepper Potts after they had thrown their full legal force behind a lowly employee who had gotten into trouble and had convinced his superiors of his innocence, even back before the company had stopped producing arms. Unfortunately, for obvious reasons, none of the remaining SHIELD personnel were field agents or the elite specialists.

Romanoff's help would have been nice too, yet she was already on her way back to the Facility on one of the Quinjets. Officially, she was heading back because she had earned a slight injury, and Captain America had ordered her to complete her overdue medical check-up at the same time. _Unofficially_ , Bruce had been taking care of Laura for the last few days and could probably use a reprieve. And Natasha did not want to miss any more of her baby's smiles.

Truthfully, one of the main reasons she was still out in the field was to keep her public image up, to keep any suspicions about her new family life stillborn. Her black pun, not Steve's. She was also using her time off base to carefully plant leads that Bruce was still in self-exile.

 _Glad to see how things are working out for the "kids,"_ thought "Uncle" Steve and he turned his attention back to what Romanoff had gotten from the base, while waiting for the NATO representative to finish his own inspection of the captured base.

 **XXX**

New Avengers Facility

Later

"Hey, Rhodey!"

The man in question turned around at Maria Hill's voice, wondering what the woman wanted of him. "Yes, ma'am?"

"Why do you guys always call in to check on people's locations," translation: where Laura was, "before heading off on a mission?"

"Oh, heh, it's kinda funny, ma'am. We were watching a comedy movie where this baby accidently gets carried around on a wacky adventure, and we started joking about what it would be like if a baby ended up coming with us. And then we actually thought about it seriously, and we just decided to take that extra precaution."

Hill stared at the man in stupefaction for a moment, at the idea that he would take such a thing seriously, but before she could respond, another voice spoke up.

"Aww, that's so sweet of you, Rhodey!" The smiling visage of the Black Widow seemed to leap into view as the man known as War Machine spun around to look behind himself, an itchy feeling prickling at his spine as he stumbled back from her. "I'm so glad that you're keeping an eye out for where Laura is!" Then she turned her attention onto Hill, who was trying to hide her own surprise at the super-spy's sudden appearance, but both women knew it was a futile attempt. Calmly walking forward, Romanoff handed Hill an assessment of the US military's actions based on the reports she had read, and then continued on her way. Never making a sound.

"…We'll be continuing this practice by the way."

Hill wisely stayed quiet, opening up the file folder she had been handed.

 **XXX**

New Avengers Lounge

Later

The New Avengers had volunteered to look after Laura for a little bit, so that Bruce and Natasha could take care of some work, and read up more on parenting. Truthfully, it was a pleasure to do so since the angel was happily sitting on Steve's lap as he flipped through a bright picture book, while everyone else watched.

Doctor Erik Selvig had dropped in too. Before heading back to Asgard, Thor had been delighted to find that the scientist was working at the New Avengers Facility, and had made a point of introducing him to his other friends. Soon after, Maria Hill also showed up in the lounge, since she had missed the fun times the group used to have at what had once been the Avenger's Tower.

"Look at you all," a jovial Selvig declared, "why don't you youngsters give some thought to having kids of your own, while you still can?"

The "kids" all sputtered or gave quick denials, not wanting to even consider the idea. Steve even tried to deflect it up by joking he was too old.

"You don't want more guys like me in the world," Rhodey said in the same humour.

"You know,' Wanda mused, "I know there's the whole nature-nurture thing, but I wonder if Laura will really grow up like her parents? I mean, we'll be watching her grow up too after all."

Everyone paused as they thought about this.

Rhodey was wondering what it would be like when Laura started walking:

 _"'_ _Who gave her sugar!? Who was the super-villain ^*) &%! that gave her sugar!?" As they chased after a speeding blur that casually ducked, weaved, cartwheeled, and leapt around every attempt by the world's most powerful and skilled heroes to grab her before her parents got home._

 _"_ _Language!"_

 _"_ _Like she's gonna—"_

 _"_ _^*) &%! ^*) &%! ^*) &%! ^*) &%!"_

 _"…_ _Oh—"_

 _"_ _Not another word!"_

Maria Hill's attention had been locked onto the possibility of the second-coming of a certain super-spy, arguably _the_ super-spy:

 _Maria Hill was a few years older, though still looking lovely._

 _She was verbally tearing into a bunch of hardened looking SHIELD agents, who were struggling to maintain their composure out of frustration and embarrassment._

 _The reason for their discomposure was because Hill was trying to find out how a ten year-old was constantly locating SHIELD's hidden bases, breaking into their level nine security vaults intended for dangerous artifacts, all just to stash her candy supply away from her parents' sight._

 _Repeatedly._

 _And each time they had to do a complete inventory to make sure she had not taken anything, again, because it "looked cool."_

 _And they_ still _did not know_ how _she was doing it!_

Oblivious to the concern on his teammates' faces, Vision ventured his own opinion. "The world would benefit from having another scientist of her father's caliber making advances."

With a wince, Wanda started her own speculation:

 _A little girl in a miniaturized lab coat was tinkering away at a big, ominous machine. Containers and instruments littered the floor with warning labels plastered all over them. Frantic fists hammered on the door to the lab, while in the window adult faces desperately tried to communicate with her through the sound-proof glass._

 _"_ _A stupid idea," she muttered angrily to herself, 'well I'll show them stupid! This gamma generator will make best candy ever!"_

Dr. Selvig's imagination was also worrying him, and made him wonder if he needed a therapist:

 _"_ _She was doing what?" a disappointed and older looking Bruce Banner asked the man who had escorted a ten year-old Laura back to the her quarters on a SHIELD base._

 _"_ _She's been stealing the lunches of SHIELD agents. Specifically the field operatives and specialists."_

 _"_ _How-?"_

 _"_ _She told them to hand them over, or else she would get angry."_

 _"…_ _They do know she cannot Hulk-out, right?"_

 _"_ _She told them it was a lie you told so they wouldn't be scared of her."_

 _"_ _Hmmph, alright, your mother will congratulate your bluffing skills after you're finished being grounded. And don't worry, this won't be happening again."_

Then Selvig remembered he had had enough of therapists and medication for a lifetime.

Sam Wilson was predicting something personally embarrassing too, as he remembered that Natasha was also brilliant:

 _Sam Wilson collapsed into his chair with a groan, while across the table from him, Laura started to work her way through the mountain of books the man had just brought her._

 _"_ _Thank you, Mr. Wilson,' she said politely, before starting her 'light reading.'_

 _"_ _By the way, I thought you'd already read 'War and Peace?'"_

 _"_ _I did, but now I want to read it in English to see how it compares to when it's written in the original Russian," the four year old answered._

As for Steve Rogers, he had to approve of this suggestion of Vision's:

 _"_ _Uncle Steve!"_

 _"_ _I'm telling you I'm fine!"_

 _"_ _You get back in the infirmary right now! What kind of example are you setting for the other patients? Or do you want everyone to try and seem macho in front of Captain America, especially since being covered in blood is cool!"_

 _"_ _Alright, alright. But do you have to use the Gamma Healer?"_

 _"_ _You slept through the radiation fear craze everyone else had, old man, you can take it. No one's gone green yet."_

"Maybe we should consider finding them a home off base? So that she can grow up with kids her own age," Sam asked with a trace of earnestness, concerned about the theoretical potential that the daughter of a mad scientist and super spy/assassin was capable of, especially if her only company as she developed were the New Avengers and ex-SHIELD agents.

Steve just rolled his eyes, and scoffed at the concern he saw on their faces.

 **XXX**

That night

Natasha smiled as she cuddled with Bruce, and she took joy in how the stress lines on his face seemed to be melting away as time passed.

They were slowly getting a handle on raising a baby, and they had lots of friends to support them. It was unfortunate that she had to stay active as a New Avenger, yet they both agreed that it was important for her to do all she could to keep the team of independent superheroes in a good public light. By staying in the field, she could help damage control and promote the idea of how beneficial the New Avengers were to the world, even without government oversight. The longer they could keep this up, the more time the couple had to find a more permanent solution to a possible civil war.

A little ways away, their angel shifted in her sleep, before drifting back into a pleasant dream. As the stars slowly took light in the sky, both parents fell asleep and dreamed of visions of the future.

 _Natasha yelling for Bruce to throw her the camera phone so they could record Laura's first steps._

 _Both parents cooing and squealing with joy at Laura's first words._

 _Natasha teaching Laura how to dance without the subtext of learning how to kill people._

 _Bruce helping her with science homework, though they may be imaging her starting her studies a little too young._

 _Bruce showing her how to mediate._

 _Natasha giggling as she catches Laura and Bruce making a mess as the former tries to help their little girl learn how to cook._

 _Natasha comforting a crying Bruce as they watch their grown-up angel receiving her university diploma from the dean._

 **XXX**

Secret SHIELD base

(Even I don't know where)

Fury permitted himself a small smile as he finished going over the latest report. There was still trouble on the horizon, but for now everything was going perfectly. The New Avengers were becoming stronger, more experienced, and most importantly, more of a team than the original Avengers. There were still some bumps to smooth out, like seeing if they could get Banner back in the field, or maybe have Romanoff handle some more analysis like she used to before spending so much time with Laura, yet nothing to really complain about. _And nothing anybody would complain to their faces about either_ , Fury thought with a rare trace of genuine amusement. Then more seriously, he came to his conclusion about this newest stage of the Avengers Initiative: _When the shoe does drop, we'll be ready. Like they say, fortune favours the prepared, and we're as ready as we'll ever be._

 **XXX**

Stark Tower

Pepper Potts, CEO of Stark Industries, entered her home with a sigh of relief. Her newest trip to Washington had been as frustrating as ever. With the loss of JARVIS, the company had suffered as it lost the second most important individual for running it, and FRIDAY was a poor replacement. Politicians were trying to subtly ask her opinion about the Avengers, and she had been forced to sit through an extra meeting while she had hired another lobby firm to help keep the situation under control. _We had enough of that nonsense when that HYDRA senator wanted to steal Tony's suit. Oh, sorry, his "highly advanced prosthesis,"_ she thought with a stab of humour.

 _Speaking of, I hope he's doing better. I hated to leave after his mess with Ultron seemed to cause him to relapse a bit, but he insisted that I had to be there in Washington. We need to spend some more time talking about it tonight. Or maybe in the morning,_ she amended with a sultry thought.

Truthfully, Pepper was the most forgiving of Tony's Ultron fiasco, and not just because she loved him, but because she knew him better than anyone else. The man that had climbed out of that cave in Afghanistan had dedicated himself to making up for being "The Merchant of Death." He had become a man of conscience who could no longer sit back when people were dying and suffering in the world. Albeit, an extremely arrogant man with a conscience. And where his relief efforts could not help, he was ready to bring in a big stick. No, a big metal club.

But he knew he could not be everywhere. That he could not anticipate everything that could happen. Unlike his fellow Avengers, he now accepted why Fury and SHIELD had originally been planning to use the Tesseract to power weapons, especially after he had faced down a massive alien invasion. An attack that he knew that they had defeated only with no small amount of luck, a bunch of politicians who thought it was a good idea to fire a nuke into a heavily populated city, and one brainwashed scientist still managing to resist enough to put in a failsafe to the portal through space.

And more importantly, as much as Tony felt driven to protect the world and the people in it, he could not handle the trauma much longer. His body could handle it well enough, but his mind had been pushed to its limit, especially when fighting against Aldrich Killian and his "Mandarin" plot. That was why Tony had refused to let Pepper become too involved with the Avengers, to protect her from the same emotional damage he had endured. That was one of the few issues he had put his foot down with her, refusing to back down even as he used everything from hard logic to begging to make her agree.

Building Ultron had been a way for Tony to continue saving people, without any more mental breakdowns. A way to keep the entire world safe and secure, in order for it to go on spinning.

A plan that she would have talked him out of if she had been given the chance. _"Peace for our time," really? He never even got the historical context for that quote with Prime Minister Chamberlain. He just charged straight in, believing he had the best solution, and never stopped to really think about it._ The only reason she had not yelled at him about it afterwards, was because she had seen how close that incident had come to finally _breaking_ him. It had taken everything she had to keep him falling into complete despair, or immediately jumping into a _new_ project to try and solve all of the world's problems with a "quick fix."

Only now was he starting to recover.

She was shaken out of her thoughts when an earnest voice spoke up.

"Oh, Ms. Potts! It is very good to see you!"

"Why thank you, FRIDAY."

"No, ma'am, you don't understand. Boss ordered me to cut off all non-emergency communications, so I was unable to call you here earlier."

"He what?" Pepper asked in a dangerously sweet voice, since Tony's decree would prevent her from calling him in turn.

"In his defense, Boss was half delirious from lack of sleep at the time," a guilty-sounding FRIDAY quickly added.

"Alright FRIDAY, he's in his lab, isn't he?"

"Yes ma'am."

Fuming, Pepper strode into Tony's private lab to stop whatever "bright idea" he had _this_ time. _If he's gone too far, despite everything else, we're through!_ she darkly promised herself. The door opened before her, and she almost backpedaled in horror.

The air conditioning was on full blast despite it being fairly pleasant outside. If Pepper had to guess, she would say it was working overtime to suppress the smell she could still catch a whiff of.

Half-eaten take-out food cartons littered the floor haphazardly. Empty bottles of what had once been pristine alcohol joined them in dangerous numbers.

Holographical images were scattered throughout the room, and in the center of it, collapsed on the ground was a fretfully twitching, unconscious Tony.

Heedlessly running over, she collapsed at his side to check his faint pulse.

A quick first aid evaluation confirmed he was stable, but it was clear that he had been working nonstop without rest or any concern for hygiene for days on end. This had happened before, but never nearly this bad.

"FRIDAY! Has he been stuck in here since I left!?"

"Yes ma'am. He's only been leaving to suit up and fly down to the street to grab deliveries from the front door."

" _We'll probably have to clean out his suit too then_ ," Pepper reflected ruefully, and strove to not let her mind wonder what he had been doing to relieve himself.

She was tempted to ask FRIDAY what Tony had been working on, but she decided to let the man explain it himself. And defend his actions.

Telling FRIDAY to alert her if anything happened, she left to get her own personal suit of armour. Returning quickly, she carried the man she loved up to their room, and put him to bed. _We're probably going to have to burn those sheets_. She put a large glass of water beside him, and sat down in a chair to do some paperwork while she waited.

Pepper was awoken from a light doze hours later to the sounds of Tony thrashing and mumbling. He had just orientated himself upright and figured out where he was by the time his girlfriend had walked over, and passed him the glass of water. Even while guzzling it down he kept trying to go on about how he had to get back to work on something he had discovered, and saying how it was too important to stop.

His rambling only increasingly incoherent until Pepper finally lost her patience.

"Tony!" she barked, "Tell me what's going on!"

Taking a deep breath, and then another, Iron Man visibly braced himself.

"Bruce, his accident, the Hulk, I don't think it was! An accident! I think someone else sabotaged it to make this happen! That someone secretly tampered with Bruce's gamma radiation experiment with the deliberate intention of creating the Hulk!"

 **XXX**

 **Author Notes**

 **Writing for Steve Rogers can be annoying, because I noticed how when he is serious or on the job he tends to refer to people by their surname. When the situation is more lighthearted or casual, then he goes to their first name. I know no one in real life who does that.**

 **Tony and Pepper are using the suits personally because after Ultron, Tony decided to shut off the function that allows his AIs to remotely control them (though he can still do it with his personal implants). I have not yet decided whether or not Pepper still has Extremis powers, but she definitely does not want to be touching Tony with her bare skin right now.**

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 **Recommended fics:**

 **"** **STARK FAILS" by Joki of Sassgard**

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 **Next chapter: "Green Terror!" Care to guess why I called it that?**

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	9. Green Terror

For better or worse, Marvel owns all of this stuff, not me.

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Chapter 9: Green Terror!

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 _Previously: Tony Stark made the horrifying discovery that the experiment that transformed Bruce Banner into the Hulk was not a lab accident, but in fact the deliberate intention of an unknown party._

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Stark Tower

The next day

Former SHIELD Director Nick Fury stared at Tony Stark for a whole twenty seconds as he tried to process this information.

The presence of Pepper Potts meant that there was some validity behind this statement, and that despite Stark's bloodshot eyes, no intoxicants were involved. That was bad news. Very bad.

A defining aspect of Dr. Bruce Banner was his self-loathing at what he had become as a result of his own hubris. How he had ruined his own life, and had caused untold suffering. If not for Romanoff and their daughter, he would probably still regard himself (with good reason!) as a threat to the entire world. A quiet part of him would probably continue to do so forever.

And now…?

Where would Banner direct that hate if he found out that someone else was at fault? That someone had _intentionally_ inflicted that nightmare upon him and made it him believe himself responsible? Where would he turn his fury?

If this was not handled very, very, _very_ carefully, then the results would be catastrophic while Banner tried to find a target. _Any_ target.

The worst news in all this though, was that this fear was only secondary.

Someone, somehow, had created the Hulk. An unknown party had changed the face of history by introducing an unstoppable rage monster. The implications that this had been deliberate were staggering.

The possibilities that there were more, that Banner might even be a _failed prototype!?_

If the next threat the Avengers had to face was an army of intelligent Hulks, able to blend in with the normal population before transforming, then Fury knew that they would be quickly missing the halcyon days of fighting Loki and Ultron.

 _Days like this, I almost wish Barnes had been a better shot, and I wouldn't have to deal with this nonsense. No, somebody's gotta do it. I will tell Hill to update my stress meds though_.

Finally, taking a deep breath, and then another one, Fury leaned forward in his chair. 'I need some more details. How is it that we're just finding this out now?'

A visibly worried Pepper Potts put a hand on Stark's shoulder to get the man to steady himself before answering, which made what followed a little more coherent: "I was looking up the whole experiment to try and come from the whole Laura issue from another angle, when I noticed it. As for why I noticed this time, it's basically because it's been a few years since I looked at it last.

'Science has moved on enough to fill in some gaps, and I've learned new stuff. I know Bruce's lab methodology better than anyone now, and I've had a lot more experience of late with spy stuff and sabotage and junk. Even then I almost passed over it. Took me hours to even figure out what was bugging me so much."

"But why hasn't Banner figured it out himself? He's spent years trying to cure himself!"

"Bruce is always touchy about the event itself. I got the impression he always focused on the symptoms more than the cause, assuming that it was just his own hubris and ignorance. Sure he probably did look initially, but as I said, things have changed enough to make the tampering more obvious."

"Could it have been one of the other scientists involved?" Fury omitted any mention of Banner's old partner, both in science and love, Dr. Elizabeth 'Betty' Ross.

"No, none of them were anywhere near Banner's league, and this is something beyond even him. And yes, I still took a look at them all, and there was nothing I could find that even hinted they could've pulled this off. They were glorified assistants compared to Banner, and mostly they just did whatever they were told and that was mostly the stuff Banner was too busy to work on. And even then he always double checked everything. The military got nothing useful out of them."

"What if it was just something to try and kill Banner, making it look like a lab accident?"

This time it was Pepper who answered. "I asked Tony myself, and to spare you the science and the ranting, it is too complicated and sophisticated. And," she hesitated, "it seems possible these subtle changes are connected with some other ongoing mysteries."

 _Yep, definitely a headache brewing_ , Fury thought behind his masklike face. So you're saying that if not for this outside party, the results could have been anything from killing Banner to having absolutely no effect?'

"Or possibly even successfully creating a super-soldier like Capsicle," the billionaire genius added. "The unfortunate truth is, I still don't understand how he survived the experiment, or how it resulted in the Hulk. Yet this stuff seemed to guarantee it."

Fury was silent for a moment before nodding. "This may help explain other mysteries. Especially all the failures to replicate the Hulk and his power."

Fury briefly wondered why no one had altered the records from the experiment to hide the crime, or if that had already happened, but quickly dismissed it. General Ross had put too much work into piecing together what had happened, as well as making sure that no one was trying to hide any secrets. In turn, SHIELD had stolen those records and had done its own confirmation. There had been too much scrutiny for even HYDRA's moles to do anything. Stark's sources were accurate.

Clasping his hands in front of him, he looked back and forth between Potts and Stark as he continued. "I'll get some people to look into this. They can verify the scientific part, and yes, Stark, I need that to happen, I have to check all the angles, and they'll have more experience regarding acts of sabotage." Tony decided to omit some obvious criticisms towards SHIELD from that. "And Stark, like Laura, SHIELD's got nothing to do with this. And I doubt it's HYDRA either. This method is too… uncontrolled for want of a better word."

Stark nodded in agreement, the genius had probably already reached a similar conclusion. Neither of them wanted to speculate out loud of course that there might be further work going on in more professionally, if not ethically, run laboratories.

"You will tell no one about this unless it's with my permission. We need this compartmentalized every way we can. Ms. Potts? If you would please go back to Stark Industries and pretend you never heard any of this.

"As for you Stark, you are going to be talking to some people to help verify this, after some very careful consideration on who to tell. We've got the _how_ figured out, now we need to know the _why_ and _who_."

"Right. Gotcha. Sounds great, Eyepatch. There's just one problem with that."

"And are you going to tell me what that is?" asked Fury with strained patience.

"The reason I figured it out, was because I was doing research on Laura. Trying to solve the mystery about her, and how she could have Bruce's uncorrupted DNA. Eventually, other people are going to start digging into the incident again, and someone else might figure it out. Maybe even Bruce himself. Probably him. Definitely him once he gets tired of being drooled on and starts wondering again where his baby came from."

"…You think that Laura was planted, to lead us to look in this direction?"

"What!? No! I –I, uhm, oh…" Stark's face darkened with rage. "We were delivered a mystery that just pointed to a bigger one. What are the odds?"

Pepper was just shaking her head at this. "Don't you guys think you're jumping to conclusions? There have got to be other explanations. Other ways to prompt such an investigation, if that was even the intention."

"Not in such depth. And not in a way that would lead Bruce to actually revisit a subject that he's been trying to forget for years, to forcing him to reach the same conclusion we have."

"…Ms. Potts? We need some advice to keep a certain couple occupied and out of the lab. Indefinitely."

 **XXX**

New Avengers Facility

Later

"Steve!" Pepper called out as she walked over towards the New Avengers. Fury had explained that around this time of day the team would volunteer to watch over Laura while Bruce and Natasha got a nap, making it the best time for Pepper to make her move. Natasha was too observant to not realize something was wrong. Yet that was no explanation for why the little sweetie was watching adults smack each other up in the ring! "Do you really think this is the sort of thing a baby should be watching?"

Smiling in agreement, Steve held up placating hands. "I just finished feeding her in my room, and we're just here to collect the others before heading off to a briefing on HYDRA activities. She only caught the last twenty seconds before you got here."

"She wasn't enjoying, was she?" Sam whispered to Wanda.

"No. She seemed confused if anything. Thankfully."

"Good, good."

"Sorry, for that," Pepper apologized, "I should've known better."

'Given the threats we're under from Natasha, yes, you should have," he smiled.

While a little curious as to the specifics, Pepper quickly decided that ignorance was bliss, and that it was probably for the best that Tony was only having little interaction with the baby so far.

Then Steve's expression became more eager. "Has Tony finished his work for the prosthetics?"

Pepper's eyes blinked in confusion for a moment before she realized that Steve was asking if Tony had finished the mechanical aspect of the new prosthetics work he was working with Bruce on, with Dr. Cho providing the synthetic skin. Doubtless the man assumed she had come here to the New Avengers Facility to bring some important news like that. "Oh, sorry Steve, but Tony's been caught up in other stuff. I'll be sure to remind him though," she hastened to add. While clearly disappointed, Steve nodded in acceptance, and she got down to her main reason for being here. "Anyways, could you give these to Laura's folks? I've got to get back to Tony, he's been really under the weather lately."

Steve was surprised to hear about Tony, though it explained why he had been distracted, and then he looked at what Pepper had passed him. He was a little confused for a moment, until he realized what exactly he was holding. "Disneyland tickets?"

"Chance for them to get out for a normal family trip while everything is still quiet. Spend some time together, and get lots of pictures of Laura wearing Minnie Mouse ears," Pepper said with a smile. "I got everything covered for them, though I know Natasha will want to go over it just in case."

"Huh, that's really nice of you Pepper!"

"Just doing my part to help!" she brightly said.

 **XXX**

Asgard

"Send for my son!" commanded the thundering response of 'Odin,' as soon as Heimdall had finished his latest report. The guard scurrying off, Loki conceded that he may have been a bit too out of character with that outburst, but he readily admitted he was worried.

During his failed invasion of Midgard, it was clear that the Green Beast was a formidable adversary from how it was able to match Thor with only raw might and animalistic skill. And no, Loki was in no way, shape or size, remembering how he had been thrown around with childish ease. No siree.

But in all seriousness, no mortal, no _human_ , should have been able to best a _god_ so casually! And someone had created it deliberately!? Were there more!?

After taking the throne, Loki gone through Odin's notes and had learned that the old man had been interested in the Hulk's prowess as well. Few could claim they were capable of throwing Thor Odinson through bulkheads, and the beast had survived trauma that could have killed an Asgardian. Thus the former king had ordered his wise men and innovators to investigate the phenomenon of an irradiated super-soldier. The consensus had been that while they could recreate the super-soldier serum for Captain America without much difficulty if they were so inclined, and even most likely improve it, they did not understand how it was possible for the Hulk to exist and have such powers, and that by all accounts the process should have killed the man. The fact that someone on Midgard had an understanding of such a significant scientific field that was greater than Asgard's, merely added to Loki's fears.  
Like SHIELD and Tony Stark, Loki concluded that coincidence was too great; that whoever was involved with the creation and appearance of the baby, was in all likelihood connected with the sabotage.

And that meant it was conceivable that an army was being created that could remain hidden from even Heimdall's sight. Worst case scenario, they could even deploy a horde of them against Asgard, that they would not see coming until they heard the screams and saw the rising smoke as their cities were torn apart by monsters.

This mysterious party had gone from a potential problem/opportunity, to an all-out threat that would have to be squashed as soon as possible. At the very least, by sending Thor and his friends against this menace would help reveal more of this foe's secrets for the new King of Asgard to exploit.

 **XXX**

 **Author Notes:**

 **I worked my way through the "Incredible Hulk" movie for inspiration for this, but some changes are clear. One point I should emphasize though because I am a nitpicker, is that careful forensic work, and surviving records from Dr. Banner and Co. made it possible for the US army, and thus SHIELD and later Tony, to figure out what the experiment involved. So despite all the destruction from the Hulk's creation, they have a 100% accurate understanding of what the lab was like on that day. They just never were able to figure out** ** _how_** **the Hulk was still made, and did not realize until now what the data was really saying.**

 **The reason I have Loki saying 'wise men and innovators,' was because I was thinking of the scene in Thor: The Dark World where he walks in on Thor and Jane Foster when she is being scanned, and says that she should be taken back to Midgard to see their healers called "Doctors." So I realized they would not call their "scientists" by that term, so just chose something that seemed to fit how they would refer to such people.**

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 **Recommended reading: "Zapustit'" by XxthesarcaticonexX**

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 **Next chapter: "Where has Thor been?"**

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 **Previous Reviews:  
** dairxoxo: I love this fic so very much I just want everyone to be happy. Update soon please

 _Thanks, I'll do my best. Sadly, even I do not know if everyone will have a happy ending, given how it has been evolving even for me._

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	10. Where has Thor been?

For better or worse, I do not own any Marvel franchise.

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Many thanks to my wonderful Beta, AutumnFroste, who writes some pretty cool stories. Go read them!

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Chapter 10: Where has Thor been?

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 _Previously: Follow Age of Ultron, Thor set out on the suspicion that some unknown force was responsible the appearance of four of the six Infinity Stones over the last few years. Meanwhile, back in Asgard, Loki continues his charade as King Odin, and learns from Heimdall that a party invisible to the guardian's incredible sight dropped off a child of both the Black Widow and Hulk. Later, they also learned that the creation of the Hulk was actually deliberate sabotage disguised as an accident. Believing that both incidents were orchestrated by the same unknown party, "King Odin" worked to contact Thor._

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Xandor, capital of the Nova Empire

Thor looked calmly through the windows of the headquarters of the Nova Corps. Heimdall had easily learned that these people had an Infinity Stone, but Thor needed to tread carefully in addressing this fact. While the homeworld had taken damage, the rest of their fleets had been recalled, and the Nova Empire, which had repelled the Kree for centuries, had quickly regained its strength. A war with them would serve nobody, yet Thor needed to be certain that the Nova Corps did not become arrogant with their position of an Infinity Stone, and that they were well aware of the dangers that such a position posed. _I need to know that their careful silence on the matter is because they know the importance of secrecy, and not because they are planning to use it against anyone_ , he thought.

"Prince Odinson!" The young god in question turned around, carefully posturing his body to seem nonthreatening to older woman approaching him, who continued, "We are honoured to have such an august representative of Asgard visiting us. Please, how can we help you?"

With a small bow of his head, Thor complied, "I shall be blunt. My journey here is from rumours of an Infinity Stone kept within the Nova Empire."

There was no shift in the woman's expression, but it was reasonable that she had anticipated the possibility he would ask such a thing. _Truly I am fortunate for my father's advice when I asked him about this upcoming meeting._

"I am merely seeking information," he reassured her, "these Stones are weighing heavily on my mind as of late. In the span of a few short years, I have personally encountered three of them. For an Asgardian to encounter _one_ in his lifetime would be worrisome. And now I hear tales of a fourth? Thus, I fear there is some greater scheme at play."

Nova Prime Irani Rael's horror was clearly written on her face as she considered the ramifications of this revelation. "I should hope the others are safe, Prince Odinson."

"I'm satisfied with their security. But I'm unsure about the fourth, so I have set out to make sure it is secure, before searching for the rest. And for any information related to them."

Rael's eyes shifted as she considered the Asgardian, before nodding her head. "If the Nova Corps was aware of any Infinity Stones, we would lock them away as securely as possible, and keep them there. At the cost of our lives. We are well aware of the threat they pose to all life, and that even if Xandor was destroyed in protecting them, it would be a small price to pay to preserve the rest of the universe."

Thor stared back at her, but she bore his gaze until he nodded again, "Very well."

"But!" The woman broke out, "We do have information from a source that we trust completely, that there is indeed another player after them. Ronan the Accuser, a Kree fanatic who was killed last year, was searching for one. On behalf of Thanos."

At this the Thunderer surged forward, towering over the woman as the air crackled with his fearsome authority, heedless of the Nova Corpsmen drawing their weapons on him. Visibly struggling to control himself, he growled, "The Mad Titan! Are you sure of this!?"

Unfazed by the presence before her, Rael nodded, "We're certain of it, and as concerned as you are. According to our source, a trusted one, Thanos promised Ronan that he would destroy Xandor in return for the Stone. And if Thanos came for us himself, believing we had such an artifact, our world would indeed burn even as we evacuated what was precious."

Breaking away, the Asgardian paced back and forth, trying to grasp the implications of this news. _I have to, I have to, what do I do next!?_

A sudden burst of familiar light outside the window caught Thor's eye, and he saw Lady Sif and Volstagg of the Warriors Three appear and approach the building. Seeing them also, the Nova Prime gave orders for the two new Asgardians to be brought to their prince and her.

Nova Prime Rael knew she was already on perilous grounds. Asgard was one the great powers in known space, infamous for their genocidal war that destroyed the Dark Elves, an equally advanced race that had tried to destroy the universe with another Infinity Stone. The rage of these two mighty civilizations as they clashed had shattered planets and had left scars upon space itself.

Truthfully, many of the modern civilizations were built upon technology scavenged from the fringes of that eons long war. They had also benefited from the power vacuum when the victorious Asgard temporarily withdrew from foreign affairs as they rebuilt themselves. And while this conflict dated back thousands of years ago, given the lifespans of the beings involved, and the clear remaining evidence of the conflict, this was no comfort. Consequently, no one on Xandor wanted to provoke the sleeping giant.

Especially not after what had happened to the Skrull Empire much more recently.

With an Asgardian's enhanced abilities, long lives in which they continuously honed their arts of war, knowledge of the affairs of all other known powers, and ability to strike wherever they wished, no one idly wakened their wrath. It was fortunate that the militaristic race largely confined their affairs to nine worlds, which had some connection to each other that the sciences of other peoples were unable to decipher. And if they demanded the Infinity Stone that remained sealed away by the Nova Corps…

Over the millennia, empires had sought to prove their prowess by waring with Asgard, and all of them had been crushed, utterly. Over the last few centuries, the elder race's forces had been increasingly led by the young sons of King Odin, who had earned reputations for ruthlessly destroying their enemies.

Loki of Mischief, who manipulated empires to their downfalls from within. Not only was he renowned for his strategic genius, he would also quickly learn what was necessary to infiltrate Asgard's enemies. Military orders were rewritten, paranoia consumed leaders, and civil war broke out even as the elder brother destroyed their armies and space fleets while he led from the frontlines. This man, who now stood within the center of the Nova Empire, was infamous for courting war, seeking the greatest conflicts he could find as he reveled in the glory of battle.

Contrary to this popular image though, this Thor Odinson seemed more civilized, a calmer and mature "god," than she would have expected, even when considering his sudden if understandable response to hearing Thanos' name. Yet Rael knew she still had to tread carefully, for she could tell that while this man was far gentler than expected, the fierce and ruthless man that he had been for millennia was still there, no matter how deep down it was buried. His very words and actions could easily determine if the Nova Corps would be forced to fulfill their vow to protect the Infinity Stone against all aggressors, not just at the cost of their own lives, but everyone else on Xandor.

 _If it comes to war, I will marshal our ships and armies. And in turn, they will ignore our fleets and attack our most vulnerable and vital sites planetside, no matter how secret or secure we pray they are. And they will meet our firearms with_ swords _and_ shields _, and other primitive seeming weapons. What does it say about a race that becomes so old and powerful that they deliberately handicap themselves? Is it because they are just that confident, or do they just get that bored during their millennium long lives? And even as I think about it, it is clear that this Odinson is perhaps all the more terrifying is how calm and in control of the situation he is. Is that just the man he is? So commanding yet apparently humble? Or is it just an act since he knows that if sweet words fail he can just crush us all with his father's blades?_

 _'But no, we dare not risk Asgard gaining control of another Infinity Stone. Even if it meant Thanos possessing it, since it appears he has yet to attain a single one._

Shortly afterwards, the newcomers had arrived.

"Thor!" Sif cried out as soon as she saw him, "news from King Odin!"

"There are concerns about your other comrades," Volstagg elaborated, throwing a wary glance at the Nova Corpsmen standing around. "Heimdall has discovered disturbing news about one of them, and Odin strongly _suggests_ that you go to them."

Thor blinked in surprise at the unexpected effort his father had expended for this, before grinding out, "I cannot." Seeing their surprise, he turned back to Rael, "May we please have a moment?"

Straight faced, she nodded, and left with her corpsmen escorting her out.

Looking upwards, Thor called out, "Heimdall, let us know if you sense any form of surveillance upon us!"

A beat, nothing happened.

Turning back to his comrades, Thor rushed to answer the questions written on their faces, "The Nova Empire does have one of the Stones, and they know that I know. They are dedicated to keeping it safe, but what is disturbing that they claim a Kree tried to get it before them. A Kree who was a pawn of Thanos!"

Volstagg cursed at this, their fears about the Stones confirmed. Dark forces were indeed seeking them out, and Thanos was a true threat to all that Asgard stood for and protected. Equally worrisome, Thor speculated that the Stones might _want_ to come together, that they had been deliberately attracting hosts to use their power. Either influencing individuals on their own, or just acting as beacons of power to attract pawns who would then seek out more of the Stones.

After the revelation of how many Infinity Stones were suddenly active, suspicion had been raised on how one of them had, by apparent coincidence, infected itself into the lover of the Prince of Asgard of the Nine Realms.

Volstagg wanted to dismiss the theory, except he was well aware of the two main truths of Infinity Stones: first, there were more questions than answers about them, second, the list of answers they did know were largely 'do not do X or Y or else you and your civilization will die.' Historically, if a civilization did find itself in possession of even a single Infinity Stone, they quickly hid it away, or gave it to some other power as fast as they could. Those who did not were quickly rendered extinct through various means. And yes, it had happened far too often for anyone to discount it as a coincidence.

 _Even King Odin and his father before him, chose to hide and scatter the Infinity Stones rather than possess them. And we still do not know where exactly Jane Foster found the Aether, for it was hidden so well that even Odin didn't know of its existence, thinking it was destroyed. His own father kept him in the dark about it! As for the Tesseract, it was given to some worshipers on Midgard to hide, so that Odin could honestly claim we no longer possessed. By Hel, we even hid the Aether with a crime lord of all people, because no one would dare consider Asgardians would associate with such filth!_

 _If the All-Fathers, in all their wisdom, deem it best to hide the Infinity Stones, rather than use them, I'm happy to agree!_

Equally rattled, Sif took a breath, "If this is true, then we are indeed in peril. But a mystery is afoot on Midgard. The green one they call Hulk, they have learned he was not an accident of radiation after all. But the deliberate intent of some unknown party conspiring against Doctor Bruce Banner."

Thor blinked in surprise at this, and now understood his father's concern. After returning to Asgard with his brother –Thor forced himself to not dwell on that issue— and the reclaimed Tesseract, Thor had been quick to inform his compatriots of the formidable might of the beast, rivaled only by his gentler half's brilliance. "Odin fears that others may be created."

"Yes, and what's more, there is a mystery of a child of his that has appeared. It is of his flesh, and that of the female on your team."

Thor did not stop to correct Sif on how there was also the Scarlet Witch on the Avengers now, he knew she must have meant that Black Widow. Nor did he see any concern there, the two had obviously been growing close with each other. _How fast can Humans give birth? Truly, this is cause for celebration! What should I get them?_ But first, to business as Sif continued.

"Heimdall reports concern over how the baby appeared out of nowhere, beyond even his sight, and that the learned men of Midgard claim it should be impossible for her or the green one to ever possibly have a child."

 _Alright, perhaps I should enquire further before helping them throw a party. Or a second one after their first. I can stop and ask Jane or Selvig for advice beforehand._

Thor paced back and forth again, trying to understand his father's wisdom, and the obstacles that had been thrown in his path. Finally he turned back to his closest friends.

"Father wants me to deal with matters on Midgard, yet I cannot overlook the revelation that my suspicions were correct. Even if there were an army of Hulks, they would still be the lesser threat to the Nine Realms compared to the horrors Thanos would unleash if he should claim an Infinity Stone for his own. My place, for now, is here amongst these stars.

"I shall stay here for a short time, and I hope that you will help me, to give the Nova Corps suggestions, if they, hypothetically of course, have an Infinity Stone. So that if in the future they should come across one, how they may ensure its protection. We need to be certain the Stone will be secure, at all costs."

Sif and Volstagg nodded, understanding the role they were to play in this. Reassuring other nations that Asgard meant no threat by using such obvious charades was new, but they trusted Thor above all else. And hey, he _had_ managed to plan how to break both Loki and Jane Foster out of two different sets of maximum security. Still, it did rankle a bit. This sort of thinking and scheming was the sort of thing they had always left to Loki to take care of.

"We must also learn more of what they know about Thanos and his actions. Truthfully, we and my father have been too lax."

Lady Sif and the Warrior's Three would claim they knew no fear, but even they flinched at the prospect of the war that may lie upon the horizon. Most of the universe believed Thanos to be the most powerful individual in the universe, and with good reason. For far too many years, the warlord had managed to maintain a delicate balance. Conquering and slaughtering innocents, but never pushing his atrocities too far to unite the armies of every other civilization against him, even as he slowly became ever more powerful. The examples Thanos had made out of those who had rashly attacked him, only added to his aura of fear.

For Thanos to possess even a single Infinity Stone could be the tipping point though. If concrete evidence emerged that Thanos had even _almost_ gained control of one, it could spark off an intergalactic war of extinction.

The Dark Elves had been a rude yet necessary wake-up call for Asgard. For the first time in millennia, Asgard had faced a foe that could match them both technologically, in sorcery, and physical attributes.

Asgard had triumphed, yet neither Thor nor his friends were one of those who reveled in the story of how Thor Odinson and Jane Foster had saved the universe. Instead they took note of how it had not been the might of Asgard that had triumphed, but instead two individuals aided by some human scientists and a mountain's worth of luck.

For himself, Volstagg was no longer so confident on what the outcome would be if they made war against a power such as that of Thanos.

 _If we go to war with Thanos, truly it will be a fight to the death. We will be given no quarter, be they women or newborn babes, and we dare not give any to any of Thanos' minions. Each and every one of those dark fiends would embrace death gleefully, seeing it as a favour to their enemies to take down as many of us as they could with them. The Dark Elves were lesson enough of the dangers of fighting suicidal foes_.

Seeing their expressions, but not wanting to wound their pride, Thor casually added, 'Not that we can do anything now. And not on our own.' Seeing their confusion, Thor elaborated, 'I doubt Thanos has been as lax, and will have made a point of learning what he can of Asgard, and our strengths and weaknesses. To attack him alone, without others to lend their might to cover our flanks, would be foolish. But that is for the future, and let us now concern ourselves with confirming if he does indeed have some role in all of this.'

 **XXX**

Later, after the discussion with Thor and Co.

Nova Prime Rael noted a questioning look on Rhomann Dey's face, "Is there something the matter, Denarian?"

"Yes, ma'am. I don't know much about the Infinity Stones, but I get that a single one was what made Ronan so dangerous. So why do the Asgardians seem so," he struggled for a moment, "relieved, that we're keeping one?"

Rael almost missed her step, and realized how worried she still was. "You are correct, Denarian. They are. The secrets of the Infinity Stones are generally kept only within the highest ranks of the great empires, but here is one for you. Do you know what the most common root cause of the destruction of the most powerful civilizations throughout history? Including the end of the Celestials?"

Dey shook his head, a foreboding suspicion possessing him.

"Possession of Infinity Stones," she finished.

 **XXX**

Midgard/Earth

Secret SHIELD base

Nick Fury bit back a snarl as another possible lead led to nowhere.

Taking Stark's suggestion on how Laura had been created to try and lead Banner into wondering about how she was created from his uncorrupted DNA, the spy master had turned his attention to the Red Room. After all, the Soviet Union could have conceivably done some related research that someone had uncovered, and the Red Room would have had DNA samples of the mother of the baby.

Unfortunately, his investigation led to nothing. Romanoff had given SHIELD ample information and evidence about the organization, and they had been fortunate on their timing since a few failed missions and infighting in the Soviet Union had reduced the number of recruits in the Red Room. Most of the girls in training at the time had been young enough to not fully appreciate what the Red Room was, or what was expected of them, and had been captured and given to foster care in the United States. They were all older now, and living happy and peaceful lives. The older ones had survived the bombing of the base had escaped to Budapest, where the Black Widow and Hawkeye had killed them all in a fight that had grown in tales to rival that of the Calvary.

Natasha Romanoff was the only real survivor of that sick organization. So _who_ was responsible for all this then?

 _HYDRA? Nothing we've found shows that they are involved so far. I almost hope it's HYDRA though, because having a new and unknown player on the board would be a nightmare!_

 **XXX**

New Avengers Facility

Two weeks later

Natasha collapsed onto Bruce, their arms intertwined to keep a sleeping Laura snuggly held between them as they all lay on the bed. Their vacation to Disneyland had been like a dream that neither of them had dared imagine before. True, they had been forced to disguise themselves a bit, but in California it was perfectly normal for tourists to wear big hats and sunglasses.

Pepper's gift had covered a two week trip, and they had crammed in as memorable a time as possible into it. Tons of pictures of the three of them smiling and laughing, lots of souvenirs for their friends and comrades (Fury was getting a Donald Duck figurine), overpriced food paid for with Tony Stark's money, and so much more.

The only downside was that Laura was still having trouble sleeping. Truthfully, neither Bruce nor Natasha would have gone if Pepper had not just sprung this generous gift on them. It would have been rude to refuse such a generous and unexpected surprise, and they both had to agree that as time passed and word got out about Laura, it would become increasingly more dangerous to go on a holiday like that.

So here they were in their room, back from their trip and all exhausted as the three of them just walked in and collapsed on the bed. Just like a normal family.

Except for the fact that Natasha's hand that was not holding her daughter in place was near a gun under her pillow, and that before they left Bruce had just finished making some intimidating improvements to her flat's personal security features.

Gun safety and how to work the home defenses would have to be one of the first lessons they would have to teach Laura. Oh, and that she was banned from unsupervised access to a science lab until she was eighteen. Make that twenty-five, and that Stark did not count as "supervised."

 **XXX**

 **I admit, my Asgard stuff was largely written after re-watching Thor: The Dark World, and enjoying it again tremendously. I started wondering how Asgard and the Nine Realms worked within the cinematic universe, and other stuff like why they called Loki the God of Mischief. I mean, it had to be for something positive enough with his reputation for him to believe he was still a candidate for the throne. Or to quote Adrian Tullberg's fic: "** **Thor the Parody** ":

 **Thor:** So Loki, whose reputation as a liar and trickster has spread across worlds and mythologies ... may not have told me the truth?

 **SELVIG:** Son, maybe there was a reason you were **born** into a job ...

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 **Please Review!**


	11. The Mandarin

For better or worse, I do not own any Marvel franchise.

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Many thanks to my wonderful Beta, AutumnFroste, who writes some pretty cool stories. Go read them!

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Chapter 11: The Mandarin

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 _Previously: After realizing that the Hulk was deliberately created by some unknown party, Nick Fury and Iron Man have been working to keep the Hulk and Black Widow from making a similar discovery_.

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Secret SHIELD base

Nick Fury stared despondently at the reports in front of him. If anything, the last few weeks had only reemphasized for him what a genius Stark was. When spy master had asked his teams to go over Banner's accident again, they had found nothing wrong. When he had carefully hinted to the team leaders that he was worried about sabotage, they had been apprehensive yet willing to go over it again.

This time, there had been a little more progress. Certain individuals had admitted that something seemed "off," but they could not narrow it down to anything definitive. And even that could be dismissed as them just being overly influenced by his request; seeing something wrong because they were expecting to see something wrong. Unfortunately, their concerns all resolved around the specific part of the project that Stark had highlighted as the source of the entire mess.

When Fury had outright shown them Stark's own findings, they had all looked again and panicked. Given how they were all bright people, the scientists were now receiving medication for stress relief.

The other thing that plagued Fury was that he could not shake the impression that he had been played for a fool. Banner's Dr. Jekyll/Mr. Hyde routine and the potential that came with it, had been something that had helped make Fury reconsider that the Avengers program was actually feasible. New York had been the proving ground for the concept, and the Hulk's participation had been crucial for victory.

Whatever Banner might say about the subject, if the Hulk had never been created, then the world would have been a far darker place. Both Loki and Ultron would have likely escaped to destroy the world another day, and Avenger casualties would have been far higher without the Hulk to absorb a significant amount of the threats they had encountered. There was a reason Code: Green was used after all.

Fury paused his train of thought and backed it up. His instincts were telling him that there was more going on with the Hulk and his actions, as if someone else wanted… _something_ from him. _If the Hulk's main contribution had been to help save the world, maybe I should start by looking closer at other people who have aided that, or even tried to hinder it?_

 **XXX**

New Avengers Facility

Medical bay

"I'm just saying," Dr. Cho said in a voice that oozed forced patience, "that maybe you're being a little too sensitive about this. Weekly check-ups are unnecessary."

Dr. Bruce Banner just fidgeted, Laura was almost eight months old now, of which she had only spent two with her parents, and was still healthy, but he could not help but worry for her, and— _Wait, I've been doing this every week?_ He stopped to think about it, and realized Dr. Cho might have a point. _Alright,_ _I might have to tone it down a little as she gets older. I doubt she'll want to be pulled into a medical examination every week after all. I'll start trying to reduce how often I do this, starting next week. But in all seriousness, we just got back from California, and I have to be certain she didn't catch anything!_

"Hey!"

Both doctors and the little baby turned to look at Sam Wilson, whose had stuck his head into the room, "Cap wants to see us. Fury dropped by personally to see us about a problem, and some SHIELD agents are sneaking in along with him. Says he wants you present for some reason."

Eyes hardening a bit, Bruce nodded, not trusting himself to speak due to the fear that Fury might be trying to pull him back into missions, and picked up Laura to follow the Falcon.

"He's probably here to get a personal evaluation of us all too," the former paratrooper speculated, mirroring the scientist's own thoughts.

 **XXX**

New Avengers Facility

Mission briefing room

"So wait, that guy on TV, claiming to be the Mandarin, who was a fake, was working for another fake Mandarin?" Sam said, wearing his Falcon uniform.

Nick Fury shot a quick glance at the man before resuming his survey of the others, "Correct. After Stark took him down, SHIELD quickly realized that Aldrich Killian couldn't be the real Mandarin, since his operation didn't include aspects of the Ten Rings terrorist group that we were already aware of. All of those bombings, and the abduction of the President, were all the works of organization that was merely claiming to be led by the real Mandarin. In fact, the genuine members include those who originally kidnapped Stark in Afghanistan, which led him to become Iron Man."

They spymaster gave the audience a moment to get the assorted gestures and murmurs of surprise out of their system.

"Does that mean Mr. Stark will be joining us?" Vision asked.

"No, not just yet. He agreed to consult, yet chose not to get involved. Although," at this Fury fixed one man in particular with a stern look, "he did ask that Dr. Banner assist him with whatever he ends up doing. Not for a Code: Green, yet he was insistent that he have _competent_ scientific back-up."

The New Avengers, who were well aware of Stark's narcissism and contempt for authority figures, just rolled their eyes or made exasperated sounds. For himself, Bruce just nodded, already figuring out several ways that he could justify staying far enough away to not risk the Hulk emerging anywhere near civilians. Waiting inside the Quinjet, outside the borders of the relevant country while caring for Laura, would be a good start.

"Don't get cocky," Fury declared sternly, "the Ten Rings group is more than your usual bunch of terrorists, and has to be taken seriously!"

 **XXX**

Hungary

Quinjet

Doctor Bruce Banner sat in the vehicle as it hovered in place in the air, stealth technology on full. The pilot, who was ex-SHIELD and technically a Stark Industry's employee, was instructed to alert him if anything significant happened, but for once he himself was not monitoring the status of the battle as the New Avengers fought it out with the terrorist cell their earlier intelligence had led them to, trusting that they could handle it on their own. His focus was entirely on his daughter.

"Yes, baby, everything's going to be just fine," he crooned, 'your mother will come and play with you next, okay? Until then, do you want to play with these?' and he held up some blocks.

Laura just clapped her hands and grinned up at him.

 _I hate this, but they should be able to handle something like this, and they have SHIELD playing back-up. It's right in the city so no Code: Green, and in the end, Laura_ has _to have a parent_.

 **XXX**

Fight with Ten Rings terrorist cell

Natasha Romanoff moved like a black shadow through the terrorist base, bringing it down from within even as the rest of the New Avengers tore it apart from the outside. Her electric batons disabled her targets silently, while her ICERs took out more from afar. Her objective was to save as many prisoners as possible, yet also reach the main computers and hack them before they were fried.

A small explosive blew the door to the main room open, and the terrorists opened fire with advanced machine guns, holdovers from when Stark Industries was still producing them, that were sold on the black market. After five seconds of sustained fire they realized that no one was in sight, so they threw in some grenades as a precaution.

 _Thanks for all the extra noise and distraction, boys_ , Natasha snarked from her hiding place above them.

She had discovered that there was a small crawlspace between the different floors in this building. It had been booby trapped of course, but she had disabled the defenses, and had crawled through towards where she judged the true heart of the facility was.

Her knives had weakened the ceiling of the room, enough for her cut a small hole to poke through a camera to get a look at what she was facing down below. Given the equipment she was seeing, it appeared that this was what all of the Ten Ring's members were the most determined to protect. Further delicate work with her blades had weakened the "floor" around her for her to break through the "ceiling" above the heads of her targets. She had chosen to switch her ICERs for her conventional Walther PPK/77S pistols with armour-piercing rounds since she did not like the look of the gear those men were wearing.

With a final visual sweep, she flexed her powerful legs and pushed against the ceiling above her and broke down through the surface below her, and descended like a silent tiger amongst field mice.

Twisting in the air and coming down in a graceful crouch, her right hand snapping up to shoot a bullet through the brain of one particular man through a gap in the crowd surrounding her, _Good, someone with eyes like that, he was liable to throw one of those grenades right amidst his own allies just to try and kill me_.

In the same motion as she shot, her left hand snapped back with a shock baton to take out the burly man behind her with a blast of electricity. A quick spin on the spot and the rest within hand's reach were unconscious, even as her pistol kept flashing at every gap made from a downed terrorist, killing with a headshot every time.

Finally moving her where she landed, she leapt towards the rest of her prey with a calm efficiency that was terrifying to behold.

 **XXX**

Later, in the captured Ten Rings cell base

"—and this, little lady, is an experimental exo-suit. Not that it would work of course, it's just a cheap knock-off of your Uncle Tony's brilliance," Tony lectured as he carried Laura through the lab the Avengers had seized, his own armour conspicuously absent.

Black Widow was glanced over at Stark with a small smile, before getting back to helping Bruce examine the software that had already been downloaded into another of the armoured suits before the attack. The couple had suggested that Captain America join them, ostensibly to help keep an eye out for any hidden surprises. In reality though, they were working to encourage the two strong willed men to spend some quality time together, and it seemed to be working perfectly so far.

"Obviously, from these inferior design specs it is clear that they were using Justin Hammer's—" A discrete cough from Steve made Tony roll his eyes, but he continued without any of his usual embellishments, "leftovers, to try and do what he could not."

"You were right though," Bruce spoke up, "They were trying a variation of the computer support FRIDAY gives you. Interfacing the pilot's brain directly into the suit to make actions instantaneous with thought. It's crude and dangerous, yet involves enough breakthroughs that I'd say that at some point they had access to a genius scientist's notes, and then tried to push forward on their own."

Tony just turned to Romanoff and made an overly dramatic act of gesturing towards Bruce, while bearing an infuriating smile at how accurate his suggestion had been to bring a bio-physicist to examine mechanical suits. The super-spy responded by playfully sticking her tongue out at the inventor, and got back to hacking through the software and forwarding the interesting looking data packets to her boyfriend. Iron Man was a little surprised by her light hearted response, yet decided it was part of her becoming a mother. It was not like he had any real life experience with the concept after all.

Given how both Laura, regardless of how she could not understand them yet, and Stark were beside him, Captain America chose his next words carefully so as to not upset the two, "What makes you think it's just the scientist's research that was taken, and not the person itself?" To his credit, Tony gave no visible reaction to the reference to how the Ten Rings had captured and tortured him in the past, and was torn between appreciation and annoyance about courtesy/pity the Capsicle was showing him. _Just take it as courtesy_ , Iron Man decided.

'Nothing quantifiable, just the way reading this stuff comes off for me,' Bruce answered. "Plus, I think SHIELD would have mentioned if anyone this smart went missing, and someone like this would probably be under surveillance." He added a small affectionate smile towards Natasha with that last part, referring to how they had first met.

Smiling back, Natasha then threw Steve a nod to show she felt the same way, which the leader returned and resumed observing the rest of the laboratory.

 **XXX**

India

Eastern Ghat mountain range

Three weeks later

 _How did this become my life again?_ Sam Wilson wondered as he looked around.

Their war against the Mandarin and the Ten Rings had carried them across the globe, earning either praise for their work, or contempt for acts of vigilantism outside of American borders. Once or twice, they had only been able to avoid a confrontation with officials over their presence by being a little quicker than the authorities, and because of public support since they were seen taking down terrorists and rescuing civilians.

The final confrontation against the Mandarin had been one fraught with turmoil, and the largest firefight the New Avengers had been involved with since their creation after the disbandment of the original Avengers.

Despite how each cell was kept independent of each other, both Stark and Banner had pieced enough clues together, along with SHIELD's intelligence, and Steve and Romanoff's experience, for them to find out where the mastermind had been hiding at the time. Not even since fighting HYDRA's helicarriers had Sam fought so hard, constantly on the move as he swooped through the air, his custom machine pistols running out of both ICER and armour-piercing rounds as he took down so many hostiles. Out of weapons, he had been forced to fight with his fists as he went up against men and women who were as professionally trained as any soldiers he had ever met in the military. Unfortunately for them, he had been given supplementary training by _Captain America_.

In the end, it had been the Scarlet Witch who had made the decisive move, catching something with her extrasensory abilities as she helped escort some of the prisoners to safety, and had realized that one unassuming man amongst them was the Mandarin. After all the misery that the anarchist had caused, the young lady had taken profound delight in beating the terrorist down with nothing but her bare hands. _Girl's dangerous enough with her hand-to-hand combat training from both Natasha and Steve!_

After the fighting was done and local police forces had helped secure the area, Tony Stark, resplendent in his business suit, had sauntered up in front of the media and casually kicked the terrorist mastermind in the balls, and walked away, telling Captain America that NATO was on its way.

They had all thought they were going home afterwards, yet Romanoff had diverted the Quinjet, and Bruce had pulled out an oversized picnic hamper he had hidden aboard.

Now here they were, sitting on a classic plaid picnic blanket, Stark, Pepper Potts, Banner and his kid, and all the New Avengers, just resting and enjoying the view from on top of a little clearing on the mountain.

Her face bright with delight, Pepper talked to Natasha about being the latter being a new mom, and then they both teased Tony about maybe becoming a father someday, with the man faking a heart attack.

Vision and Wanda were sitting close together, discussing how looking at the beautiful scenery affected them both.

Steve caught Laura after the girl had rolled down the hill a little bit, and grinned as the girl laughed and clapped her hands, leading the Sentinel of Liberty to pass her up to Tony to help her roll down again.

Rhodey was busy making a super-sandwich that looked big enough to maybe impress even Thor if he was present, while Sam caught a picture of it.

Bruce was lying beside his girlfriend with his eyes closed, showing how he trusted Steve and Tony with his daughter by not constantly checking on the three of them.

Less of a team, more of a family as everyone ate away, joked around, and just for a little while, embraced a moment of peace.

 **XXX**

Avengers Facility

Later that evening

"How do you think it went?" Natasha asked as she changed Laura's diaper.

Bruce looked up from where he was disposing of the previous undergarment, "I think it made a good impact. Steve and Tony seemed to have really gotten better with each other. Good work by the way, getting them to both play with Laura."

Smiling at the praise and looking down at her daughter, the mom altered her tone for a little 'baby talk' voice, "You're a good little spy, aren't you? Wrapping powerful men around your finger before you're even a year old!" Then both parents started chuckling at the small joke.

Sighing, Natasha turned back to her boyfriend, "It did help, a lot. But how much it will help keep everything together, that's harder to tell. We won't beat this overnight, Bruce, you know that, right."

With a resigned nod, Bruce walked over to hug both his favourite girls, "We'll still make it," he promised.

"Yes. She _will_ grow up with the life we never had, and the best way to do that is to keep fighting the good fight here."

Looking her in the eyes, Bruce beamed even more, "My we really have grown up lately, haven't we?"

Scoffing, Natasha just said, "Dork" affectionately, and hit him on the shoulder. Turning around she headed to their bedroom to tuck Laura in, and Bruce followed, with a smile that matched his girlfriend's.

 **XXX**

 **Author Notes**

 **I admit, dealing with the Mandarin is more of filler content, while the main part of the story is the family life and Fury trying to figure out what is going on in the shadows. Sorry it is a bit of short story for dealing with someone who is supposed to be a major (in terms of just Earth) villain. Part of it is from the scarcity of information, since I only got the idea to use the Mandarian and Ten Rings terrorist group because the Cinematic wiki said they were actually still ongoing, and everything that happened in Iron Man 3 was unconnected and that the conspirators in the movie were just (knowingly or not) stealing the Mandarin's name.**

 **I am curious though as to what you think of the fight scene with the Black Widow. Did I do a good job of portraying her?**

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 **There are now a few one shots though, and possible cameos of a grown-up versions of Laura Fury Romanoff-Banner will be appearing, including in my other ongoing Avengers fic "If She Should Be Worthy," in chapter 6. I say "possible" because my story, and thus my only OC character, is still developing.**

 **-0-**

 **Recommended fics:**

 **"Beauty and the Beast" by WoNdy_Alice**

 **"The Ones I Care Most About" by thewonderpen**

 **"Super Elastic Collisions" by Katla**

 **"She's With Us" by Annabelle536, also inspiration for how Wanda dealt with the Mandarin.**

 **"Hell is Other People's Hearts," by Redhood79. Inspiration for later Laura Barton and Natasha Romanoff interaction.**

 **"Sister in Arms," by SETI-fan**

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 **Next Chapter (eventually): "To Kill a God"**

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 **Previous Reviews:**

 **Guest 1:** Ooh this is ominous. I actually look forward to bruce's reaction to this news. And the rest of the story. Wait the mandarin? He's dead. Or is that a hint that aim is behind it all?

 _Yeah, I hope to get Bruce's eventual reaction to the truth down just right. And of course, a lot of characters are afraid of what it might be. Hope I explained enough about the Mandarin above, but if not, check out the Marvel Cinematic Universe Wiki._

Guest 2: I wish you would focus more on Bruce please

 _I know that this chapter still did not have much with Bruce, yet he will be getting more chapter time in the future._

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 **Please Review!**


	12. To Kill a God

For better or worse, I do not own any Marvel franchise.

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Many thanks to my wonderful Beta, AutumnFroste, who writes some pretty cool stories. Go read them!

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Chapter 12: To Kill a God

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 **This covers material from Season 1 of Agents of SHIELD.**

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 _Previously: Still worried about the secret creation of the Hulk, Nick Fury's trained paranoia also started wondering what had also been happening with the Avengers that he is unaware of. He has also been trying to keep Bruce too busy to investigate his daughter or the Hulk, such as by conspiring with Tony Stark to have Bruce join the New Avengers in hunting down the Mandarin._

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 _'I still can't believe we **cloned** a **god**. Did you know Tony had been holding onto that strand of Thor's hair since the **first meeting** of **The Avengers**? What kind of man combs his furniture for **hair follicles** and **skin cells**?'_

-"Civil War," by Mark Miller

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Secret SHIELD base

Nick Fury glared at his computer screen, and the names listed on it. He recognized all of them: each of them was powerful and influential individuals who he had known would likely try to interfere with implementing the Avengers Initiative, and especially the Hulk's placement on it. Therefore, the former Director of SHIELD had worked long and hard to make sure they did not hear about it for as long as possible, and would thus be unable to meddle.

For some reason though, no one had thought to tell him that they were all dead now.

Accidents, lethal birth defects, health problems, a home invasion gone wrong, accidental drug overdose, suicide over a scandal, et cetera. Most of them had happened before the Battle of New York.

A list of men and women who were politicians, longstanding government officials, wealthy business people with deep connections, and players in the intelligence field from across the globe, and all of whom would have likely been significantly active and vocal in their opposition of the Initiative once it had gone public, and would definitely have been against having a barely controllable, nigh unstoppable rage monster as an Avenger. And yet they had all been silenced before they had even had a chance.

After Stark's revelation, Fury had started digging into matters deeper, and without his usual resources, and had started turning this up, along with the help of other SHIELD agents. He had also reinvestigated some closed-cases regarding the Hulk that now appeared far more ominous. For instance, Fury had already known that Dr. Samuel Sterns, or what he had become after he was infected by some of Dr. Banner's blood in a failed attempt to "cure" the Hulk, was dead.

He had investigated _that_ incident carefully, because that particular lab had been on a SHIELD base where loyalists and HYDRA had apparently fought each other to mutual extermination during the revelation of the Nazis moles. There had been no survivors or intact surveillance records, and some research had been destroyed. Despite obvious suspicions, and given that such important experiments were being conducted there, SHIELD investigators led by Fury himself had gone over everything with a fine toothed comb, yet had fortunately found no hints that anything duplicitous had happened. That the men and women there had simply and tragically killed each other, and no one else had been involved. But now Fury was thinking about how the only other person besides Banner who really understood the Hulk's biology had been shot in the crossfire, with wounds that were guaranteed to be fatal.

Further in-depth research had also discovered the not insignificant fact that Banner's lab assistants, who had only been hurt in that infamous "accident," had disappeared. As had all of the US government's men and women who had been studying any samples of the Hulk that Lieutenant General Thaddeus Ross had recovered. The samples themselves had been "corrupted" in –guess what?—more apparent accidents.

The only names that were missing from the list of dead people who had any working knowledge about the Hulk were General Ross, and his daughter, Doctor Elizabeth Ross, both of whom Fury personally kept constant tabs on. Neither of them so much as caught a cold without the spymaster learning about it within the hour at the latest. The General's last personal assistant had also died shortly after the last time Banner had escaped the Army's custody: a hit-and-run, supposedly by drunk driver.

It had been Director Coulson's personal and elite team that had found this when they hard started to dig deeper into the questions Fury was asking them, and they were already able to confirm that at least some of these deaths had involved foul play when examined more carefully.

At first glance, a bunch of suspicious deaths were not enough for a full investigation, lest SHIELD get caught up in conspiracy theories. But what most were unaware of was that most of the scientific records on the Hulk had been falsified, deliberately tampered by agents to keep anyone from stumbling upon the truth. Sterns, the scientists studying him (and their notes), and all those involved with the creation of the Hulk, whose identities had all been carefully concealed for just this reason, were the only ones who might have plausibly concealed some hints of the experiment in their memories. And now they were all dead with no known suspects.

There could be dozens of motives for killing those power players –even Fury had been enjoyed to see some of them gone—and some of them might be from genuine accidents, or murdered to reasons unrelated to the Avengers. But that did not explain why SHIELD was only learning about this now. Their intelligence arm was vast, insinuating itself across the world in ways that would give liberal-minded politicians a heart attack. Yet despite all of the other suspicious deaths that they were routinely informed of, somehow none of Fury's agents had been privy to information that they could have learned on the evening news. Someone had infiltrated their computer records to prevent them from receiving any related reports, and careful interviews showed that lower-ranked subordinates _had_ been sending news to their superiors, and receiving orders to let the matter drop. Even after HYDRA had been revealed and purged.

Someone was indeed playing games with the Hulk and his former teammates, and was not afraid to commit murder in the process. In fact, whoever was responsible could receive a life sentence just for serial killing. _No, it's not the number of the deaths that's worrisome, or even how they managed to kill so many people so easily, but how no one has noticed yet_. No one. _Not the FBI, not the CIA, and not SHIELD._ Fury took a moment to take a breath to calm himself down.

 _Alright, Coulson and those kids are looking more into the deaths and actions of those who would have opposed the Avengers program. They need me to help look for more new angles, drum up more resources for them, and above all else keep this classified still._

 _Stark and I'll have to keep giving Banner science projects to work on. He's already helped Stark go over everything that we seized from the Mandarin, which bought us a few weeks, but what next? We'll tell them that Dr. Cho is continuing to study Laura, and keep her focused on the baby itself. I should maybe find something to help keep Romanoff busy too, for a mind like hers, raising a baby won't keep her distracted for long. I need something new._

 **XXX**

New Avengers Facility

Next morning

"I think it's time we got serious about it," the Black Widow mused as she lay in bed with Dr. Banner.

"Oh?" he questioned.

"Yes, we've put it off long enough, and the longer we wait, the harder it'll get."

"It'll take some careful investigation to make it work, but I'm with you."

"Good." Hearing some faint sounds, Natasha got up and walked into the neighbouring room where Laura's crib was kept, alerted by the slight shift in her daughter's breathing. Sure enough, the little girl was starting to wake up. Letting her sleep outside of their room, and away from the nightmares that would wake her parents up, had been obvious in hindsight, but they had both had difficulty letting her out of their sight. It had taken a stern text from Clint for them to get their act into gear.

"We're going to be stepping on some toes doing a project like this," Natasha continued casually, before shooting her boyfriend a hard look, "are you sure you're okay with this?"

He just pushed himself up to lean against the headboard and shrugged, "It's important that we do this."

"Maybe Dr. Cho can help us," the mom wondered as she let her baby play with the mom's index finger.

Pausing to bask in the sight before him for a moment, Bruce just shook his head, "No, I don't think she'll want to help with this. Sorry."

With a small sigh, Natasha nodded in agreement, having already come to the same conclusion. Then she returned to beaming down at her daughter. "Guess what, cutie?" she cooed, "We're going to find a girlfriend for Uncle Steve!"

"Whether he wants one or not," Bruce smiled. Still, Steve was one of Bruce's few close friends, and the man deserved some more happiness in life. Moreover, the scientist could make sure his girlfriend did not go overboard.

"Well, yes. Everyone wants Captain America, even the guys. The trick is finding someone he wants to be with in turn."

Bruce paused in getting a bib onto Laura for breakfast, "Are we sure he's not into men?"

"He's a real gentleman about it, but yeah, I know he's more into the gals."

"'Kay."

 **XXX**

Steve was bouncing Laura up and down on his knee, mournfully asking, "Do you know why your mommy and daddy keep trying to marry me off? Can you tell me the reason?"

Ignoring the man's protests, Dr. Banner was telling Dr. Selvig how he was finishing up some work with the ICERs. He had started by looking for a way for a person to build up a resistance to the chemical weapons so that they could not be use against those New Avengers who lacked a super-soldier serum enhanced healing factor. Shortly after starting that, the bio-physicist had also begun enhancing the chemical tranquilizer in the ICERs to deal with those whose abilities allowed them to overcome the present formula. "So do you want to take a look?" Bruce finally asked.

Also turning a deaf ear to the distress of the Sentinel of Liberty, Selvig politely agreed, yet was quick to say it was unlikely that he would have much to contribute, to which Bruce said a fresh perspective might still be useful.

Then he paused to fish out his cellphone, noting from the corner of his eye that Natasha was doing the same thing.

 **XXX**

Nearby town

Two hours later

"Agent Romanoff, Dr. Banner, thanks for seeing me," Fury said in greeting as they met at a little café, the older man wearing dark sunglasses to hide his ruined eye. "I have a little problem that needs to be solved that I could use your help with. And no, this isn't something I'm trying to compartmentalize from the Avengers, I just feel you are the best suited for this." Their faces revealing nothing, the couple just gave a nod, with Banner muttering something unintelligible.

"You two might not be aware of this, but there is an Asgardian living here on Earth." Predictably Natasha gave no response, but Banner was clearly interested. "Uh huh, it was one of the few things that didn't get put into a file for the whole world to later read on the internet. We wanted to keep it really low key how much aliens were amongst us.

"Apparently he was a commoner who came here to fight a war in the Twelfth Century, and fell in love with the place. A SHIELD team encountered him over a year ago, under the name Elliot Randolph. He later managed to get back under our radar, and thus HYDRA's too, yet when we first found him he got involved with a fight with a third party and lost a lot of blood. While he survived, there was enough blood for a clean-up crew that followed to get a sample for study."

What Fury declined to add was that the sample had been studied as a potential replacement for Project: TAHITI.

"Unfortunately, the lab was in England, and when SHIELD and HYDRA's secrets were put online, that lab was confiscated by the government, along with the sample. We just got intel to confirm that the personnel there were unable to destroy successfully their research before being arrested by the authorities. What's worse," and here Fury paused to impress upon them how concerned he was, "they've been shipping in supplies that would be necessary components for anyone trying to clone something or someone." They were both visibly concerned now with that, and he agreed, there were too many ways this could go sideways.

"None of us really want to know what they think they're trying to accomplish, so this needs to be taken care of. I need you, Romanoff, to get in there and sabotage the process and retrieve the original sample. And I need you, Dr. Banner, to help her do so in a way that makes the scientists there think it was destroyed in a plausible lab accident. SHIELD's relationship with the English government is too precarious at the moment. Especially since it appears that this this is indeed from the government, or at least a part of it, and is not a HYDRA operation."

He held up a hand to forestall Romanoff's obvious critique of this plan, "Everyone else who could have done this is dead, retired, not trusted enough with something this extreme, or busy with other serious projects and cannot be removed from them. You're still our best infiltrator, and Banner should be able to give you the advice you need to pull this off. Not to mention, we'd all like to see you in action, Doctor," he added with a knowing look.

[Flashback]

 _Everyone was asking questions, trying to figure out how his newly discovered baby that Tony insisted belonged to Bruce and Natasha could possibly exist._

 _"Aren't there some other records you could check with? The army must've had something on him," Steve interjected._

 _Natasha only shook her head at that, "No. Early on, when the army was still keeping the Hulk top secret and really compartmentalized, Bruce managed to get in and destroy all of his records and samples. He'd quickly realized the extent to which he had to go to into hiding."_

[Flashback End]

The impassive look Bruce returned only seemed to reinforce for Fury how correct his decision was.

Seeing that the spymaster was not going to say anything else, the couple turned to look at each other, each sporting a small frown of concern as they seemed to communicate without words, and Fury saw confirmation of his suspicions, _Yep, they're in love. Half wish that it was just an act on Romanoff's part, but as far as I can tell it's not, and she'll actually choose him and Laura over SHIELD. Good for them_ , he thought sincerely.

When they looked back at the spymaster, they started ask a few questions, yet Fury knew that they would be doing the mission. _There_ , the one-eyed man concluded with satisfaction, _that should keep them busy for a few weeks_.

 **XXX**

An hour later

Carefully ducking and weaving through the town, Bruce and Natasha finally found a place that they were confident was not under any surveillance, SHIELD or otherwise.

"Well," Natasha started, "this should be interesting. Steve'll be furious of course at SHIELD, but no surprise there. In fact, he'll probably be wondering if they've tried cloning him." She paused, and then continued in an offhand manner, "They did try actually, using one of the remaining blood samples they had left of him, but it failed miserably. I understand that the radiation used as part of the process to make him a super-soldier meant it wouldn't work, and Agent Peggy Carter was concerned about the warnings from serum's creator that the results depended upon, and reflected, the person's actual personality. Even after she retired, they were still worried what cloning a mind could do, and what the results from the serum would be if they ever recreated it."

"They couldn't copy the memories and personality, or replicate it, so they didn't think cloning someone who was originally scrawny was worth the pay off," Bruce offered distractedly, whilst his brain ran through the ramifications of what he had heard in the last few hours.

Natasha smiled as she watched the gears shift in Bruce's head. However self-controlled and cautious he was now, the man had originally been a radical scientist as he pioneered many developments in multiple scientific fields simultaneously. The creation of the Hulk was merely the most noteworthy example. There had been a reason that Stark had argued Bruce was a stereotype of the classic Mad Scientist,

"I'm surprised that they didn't try to clone Thor," he finally offered, partially joking and partially throwing her a knowing look.

Natasha was silent for a moment before shrugging her shoulders, "They tried. He left lots of DNA samples when he was living in New Mexico, but it was all for a normal human." Noting Bruce's confused look, she clarified, "Saliva on his dishes, traces of hair and skin, and apparently in Asgard the toilets flush themselves for you, so we had some stool samples." Seeing Bruce's look she elaborated, "I didn't ask for details. Anyways, SHIELD tried again after his fight at in Greenwich, since he left hair, skin, and little bits of blood all over. All the samples were useless though. They couldn't tell if it was because they were corrupted or because it was some Asgardian thing. Something about this new guy must be different."

Bruce's brow was furrowed in thought, and then he nodded. "Tony tried something similar, asking me to look at Thor's DNA, but nothing ever came of it. I just thought he realized how insensitive it was," Natasha threw him a look, "or Pepper found out and made him stop," he conceded, "but he was probably having trouble too, despite Thor living in the Tower and leaving samples all over the place." Noting Natasha's glare, he bowed his head in shame, "I know, I'm sorry, more meddling in what we shouldn't have, and nothing good has ever come from Humans playing with Asgardian stuff, although you didn't say if you tried to stop SHIELD from doing it even after you met Thor."

Natasha relaxed her expression as she conceded Bruce's point, and rested her head on his shoulder partially as a silent apology, but mostly to make clear that that life was behind her now.

 **XXX**

New Avengers Facility

Two weeks later

Steve Rogers held Laura in his arms, waving her little hand for her as the Quinjet taking her parents to their next destination took off, "Say 'bye, bye,' Laura," he cooed, with the rest of the New Avengers also giving brief gestures, or were just enjoying the sight of the adorable infant. Until something troubling occurred to a certain someone.

"Is she old enough now that we don't have to change her diapers anymore?" Sam asked in a hopeful tone.

The New Avengers all exchanged stupefied looks before looking back at the little baby, with the innocent, innocent eyes.

They were not fooled for an instant.

 **XXX**

Quinjet

While Bruce set the autopilot, Natasha finished her inspection for any listening devices on the plane. There were several of course, yet they were all just SHIELD issue, and everyone living on base had been carefully vetted by her, Wanda, and Vision, so she knew that the surveillance devices were only from their allies. So she removed the ones you were meant to find, the ones that were well hidden, and finally gimmicked the ones built right inside the walls on Fury's orders to receive false recordings whenever she wanted to.

Bruce paused as he walked towards her, noticing her hesitation with the last bugs, "What's wrong?"

"Doing this, what we've got to do, I'm really breaking away from SHIELD now," Natasha admitted with regret, and sadly continued. "All my life I've been doing what others wanted me to do, or just going through the motions of I had been trained to do. Even when the KGB fell, I kept doing jobs like before because that was what I knew. Then SHIELD became my life, my new foundation, where I could fit in and do something. When I helped Steve take down both SHIELD and HYDRA, I was following a new leader because I felt betrayed by my old one, because I'd learned it was actually _adding_ to the red in my ledger, and Steve seemed to know what he was doing. And I knew I could trust him. Now? It's just us, and we'll be against everyone."

Bruce just walked over and embraced her, knowing how hard it was for both of them to step out of the molds they had grown comfortable in, and take the initiative with the world, yet that was what they had been doing increasingly ever since they started showing an interest in each other. Even if Nick Fury was the closest thing Natasha had to a real father.

Hopefully he would forgive them, especially when he learned what they were trying to do.

After an endless moment, Natasha released her own grip on him, and was back to business. "We have to destroy the sample of course, and tell Fury it was an accident or unavoidable," Natasha calmly remarked, voicing the betrayal she had known she would have to commit against a superior she respected and even cared for. But it had to be done. Nothing good came from messing with anything Asgardian, and if this English intelligence cell was successful it could tip the scales of balance in the world in an unfortunate direction. They did not even want to think about the repercussions of creating living weapons would have upon present public opinions on superheroes.

Bruce just nodded in agreement, as he pursed his lips in thought. Finally he nodded, "We might be able to do it pretty easily. The kind of equipment that Fury was able to give us intel on is extremely sensitive, so we, or should I say you," he said with an affectionate smile, "can cause the accident elsewhere, and have it cause enough of a change in the conditions of the Asgardian clone to ruin it."

"We'll still have to be sure all the samples, original and new, are destroyed," Natasha corrected, and Bruce's face fell at the thought.

"Oh, right."

"Don't worry, we'll figure it out," she assured him.

Hearing something else in her tone, Bruce turned to his girlfriend and gave her a careful observation, "You're really upset about this, aren't you," he said sadly.

Natasha gave a small sigh, "Yes. Fury and SHIELD took me in. The man trusts me, and I used to think I could trust him with anything, and I just wish we could be sure we could bring him into this. But, he's just, you know."

Bruce nodded at his girlfriend's uncharacteristic frustration, "He's too into the system for us to approach just yet. We'll need something more, something to show that we have another way."

"At the moment, he'll probably just think we're too much into Steve's camp, and trying to recruit him, and he'll shut us down. Plus, SHIELD's spent too much time and effort in the past trying to control people enhanced with powers, or possessing skills that normal humans can't match, and at the very least wants them all written down on the Index," Natasha conceded, remembering how she had used to contribute to those containment measures, even killing a few of the "Gifted" who were deemed too dangerous, and then remembered an old argument with Avengers before they had officially become a team.

 _[Flashback]_

 _They were all arguing in the Helicarrier's lab, with Loki's scepter glowing behind them all. And she put her own thoughts into all the dueling male egos, "Are you really that dense? S.H.I.E.L.D. monitors potential threats."_

 _Bruce scornfully asked, "Captain America is on threat watch?"_

 _"We_ all _are!" she shot back._

 _[Flashback End]_

"And that's why he turned towards using the Tesseract to power weapons," Bruce agreed, following Natasha's line of thinking, "in case the Avengers Initiative wasn't the answer to what the world was increasingly facing. It wouldn't have worked, we know that now, even without HYDRA, and Fury's always been supporting the Avengers, and probably doesn't trust anyone else anymore, even himself, to run a program to make people with powers Registered and working for the governments. But he's going to start getting pretty desperate if it looks like he's going to be dealing with a civil war between people who can tear up cities."

Then he took a deep breath, "And he's going to have trouble seeing anything different between what we're saying, and what Steve believes: that when protecting people's rights and freedoms you do whatever is necessary to fight back, even if that means going against the very government you once fought for with all your power. I'll bet even if he hadn't learned the truth about SHIELD and HYDRA, he'd have tried to take down Project: Insight, with their satellites that tracked people by their DNA from orbit to fire on them with high-powered weaponry. This world of security and control is not what he wants to live in, and it's seductive for other people too, not having people like SHIELD or the government in charge of your lives. Unfortunately, it can be even more tempting when you've got powers, when you're Gifted, and it becomes a question on where you draw the line on listening to what others say. And we're already seeing a rise in vigilantes, and we're not even sure how many have powers and how much is just hyperbole."

"Like the Twins," Natasha said in agreement, remembering how the Pietro and Wanda had thought they were saving the world from the Avengers. "Or Tony when he first got his suit. Doing what they think is right."

"Yeah, and Tony was worrying people from the very beginning, especially when he appeared so irresponsible when he was dying. There was no accountability for their actions, and I'm wondering how much of Tony's PTSD is behind him wanting to step back from all this but still leave someone responsible in charge of everything. A well programmed computer sounds a lot more reliable than unpredictable humans. As for Steve," Bruce paused before he went, "he's a good man, the best, with beliefs most people can get behind. He's even managed to build up a surprising amount of respect in the Middle East they say. But he's more of a soldier now than he was when he first left Brooklyn. Still a good man, the greatest, yet he _knows_ , however accurately, that he can't win this with words like he wants. The problem is where do you draw the line against people rebelling against authority? Especially with a man everyone respects and looks up to takes on the system head-on with his fists and shield?"

Natasha absently nodded in agreement as Bruce continued to air his own thoughts and insight, conclusions that the two of them had had difficulty publicly airing until now. "And it might not even be Registration itself, but some other controversial issue about peoples' rights that forces him to step forward and take action, while bringing in a lot of other heroes, SHIELD agents, and other people with him. He's an example, and people will follow him."

Deciding that her boyfriend had gotten most of what he had been quietly processing for a while now off his chest, Natasha put in her own thoughts. "But at the same time we both know too well why we can't let the government control us," she sighed, as she remembered her experiences with HYDRA when she had finally learned the truth about the organization and what it had been doing with those Gifted and Enhanced, and what she knew about Bruce's past with being hunted by General Ross to be used a weapon or tool of the military.

No, the Sokovian Accords, registration, was unacceptable.

Even if all the politicians involved were genuine and sincere, respecting the wishes of the electorate and solely trying to make the world a better place, they both knew that someone would emerge who would try and take advantage of the situation with disastrous consequences. And Natasha had killed too many politicians, American and otherwise, to believe that the ones responsible for this were a collection of angels; just ask Alexander Pierce, who had simultaneously been the Secretary of the World Security Council and one of HYDRA's leaders, former United States Secretary of Defense, and a man who had refused the Nobel Peace Prize when he claimed that working for peace was a person's responsibility. Like Fury, Natasha had trust issues with politicians.

"Caught between a rock and a hard place," Bruce agreed. "Or rather, caught between two separate combustibles; burned by one or the other, and heaven help us if they go both go off at once."

Smiling a little at her boyfriend's nerd-talk, Natasha gave another nod, "If they start fighting, it won't stop. Even if something happens to one of them now before it starts, someone else will step forward and it'll still go forward. And then we get a wildfire that keeps growing and consuming everything its wake."

"So we've got to make sure there's no spark, by keep pouring water on them,"Bruce finished, completing the analogy.

"Yeah," Natasha agreed solemnly, knowing how hard it was going to be.

The truth of the matter was nobody could now win a modern day war over what rights and freedoms people deserved without a _lot_ of bloodshed, never mind the powers that certain individuals could channel.

It did not even matter which side was _right_ in this, just that if blood was shed over this issue, then people would become forced to take side and it would all escalate until it spread to engulf the world, not matter how much the people who started it tried to stop the fighting.

And if a side did emerge victorious from the mess, it was all but guaranteed that by that point they would feel forced, pushed by "necessary measures," to the more extreme edges of their personal philosophies.

A precedent set by Captain America, the great hero himself, for any well-meaning super-powered revolutionary to justify his actions, believing there would be no limits over his rights except for what he fought for. Yet accountability, responsibility, self-control, was all still necessary to protect those not so fortunate in life. Natasha knew this from how SHIELD had hunted down Gifted people who abused their talents, and Bruce knew it from his own curse. With Registration, how long before HYDRA style mind control technology or "incentive" measures were used "to be safe," and "accountable?" How would the rights and freedoms of those with powers be properly appreciated, if everyone was afraid of the destruction they were capable of?

But this was only if the Civil War actually broke out.

Either parent could accept either side of the brewing conflict, but both also knew what would happen if violence erupted. So they would do whatever they could to keep it from happening, from escalating, preventing any more weapons from entering the fray.

"We've got a long way to go to accomplish this, and we still don't know how we'll really do it either," Bruce admitted, "outside of the fact that we'll be actively sabotaging our friends throughout this, but we can't let it go through, even if it means accepting Registration. This isn't something that we'll be able to run from, it'll hit everyone." Bruce was silent for another moment, "I miss the good old days of alien invasions and genocidal robots; things were a lot less complicated…"

Natasha reached over to briefly grip Bruce's hand in agreement.

 **XXX**

Quinjet

Over the Atlantic

Afterwards, they changed to get into their undercover roles, Bruce as a typical scientist who had recently been hired; Natasha had already hacked into the network and uploaded his personal information to pass a cursory investigation, and would remove it when they left, while she herself would be replacing a woman who was already employed there. This employee was the weak link in the plan, yet SHIELD was confident that the lab technician was both honestly concerned about the work she was doing, and willing to be well paid for being a Good Samaritan. A file that came with the briefing, and some recordings, would provide enough background for the Black Widow to pull off her impersonation, as well as a floor plan and other observations from the technician. The only issue was that part of their agreement with the woman was to make sure her collaboration remained a secret, and with that in mind, Natasha pulled out both a wig and two little gifts from Tony for both of them.

The inventor had been concerned about how little his friends, although especially Bruce, were getting out of the Avenger's Tower before the Ultron fiasco. Yet after Natasha's identity had been put onto the web, and both she and Bruce had spent enough time being publicized on TV, they had been concerned about being recognized. Well, again it was mainly Bruce that was worried, yet Natasha wanted to be free to enjoy being in one place in public for a while, especially at some of the restaurants that the two of them had been hanging out in before they started to realize how serious their feelings for each other were.

So Tony had used his genius to recreate a pair of personal Nano Masks for both of them; sophisticated devices originally used by SHIELD, and thus HYDRA, that could completely change their identity into whomever they wanted. This included facial shape, skin tone, voice, etcetera, and were even nearly undetectable unless you were specifically looking for them. They were the perfect little additions for the couple's infiltration.

A few minutes later, two very different looking individuals were standing inside the Quinjet as they prepared to fly over England's coast.

 **XXX**

Quinjet

London, England

Bruce gave a final inspection, his fourth, of all of the equipment that they had brought with them, while Natasha made final contact with their SHIELD back-up. If anything went south, those men and women would help extract them, hopefully fast enough to prevent the release of the Hulk. They were also keeping the woman who Natasha was impersonating in protective custody as a precaution (it was a very nice hotel room she was being held in, so the lady was quite content).

Satisfied that everything was in order, and that she had memorized the notes on the woman's friends and habits, Natasha made her silent approach towards the inconspicuous office building where the lab was being held. The Quinjet's cloaking technology silenced all sounds and hid them from sight as they landed, and Fury's intelligence had confirmed that the building lacked any technology to scan for the advanced flying craft. Walking out of the jet and onto the unoccupied roof, Natasha and Bruce headed towards the nearby door, having already remotely disabled the cameras in place. The rooftop was preferable to the front door, because fooling human guards, especially when impersonating someone, was less reliable than the ability of SHIELD's superior software to bypass electronic security. Leading the way, the super-spy started with disabling the door alarm before stepping inside to go down the stairs.

Natasha stayed ahead, reasoning that she would be more adept at spotting anything suspicious. Moreover, if they encountered any threats, her methods of dealing with them were sufficiently orthodox that it would be difficult for investigators to know which of the various clandestine organizations the trespassers were affiliated with; Bruce's method of dealing with threats was another story of course.

They continued to casually move down the hallways as they walked through the building, spaced out so that they did not appear to be together, her carrying a computer tablet that went with her lab coat, and Bruce with a bundle of notes and a cup of coffee as if he had already been at work for hours.

Then Bruce noticed who was coming: heavily armed military personnel, probably a special ops unit. Marching down the hall with rigid discipline melded with a careful watchfulness that Steve or Sam carried with them (he had noticed you would rarely catch Natasha in the act of taking in her surroundings since she did it so casually). These men would have been ordered to respond to the slightest irregularity with extreme, if not lethal force, in order to maintain the security of this government prize.

And they walked straight by him.

Oh, they did _see_ him; they just did not _notice_ him.

Their gaze passed over a man, who while unfamiliar, was so dull and uninteresting that he was not worth paying attention to, not even worth remembering.

Even before his lab accident, Bruce had always tended to be the loner who stood to the side and no one really acknowledged until they saw the results of his brilliance. After becoming a target of the US military, he had been forced to learn how to project an impression of being so unimportant and so boring that people would just ignore him.

There were several reasons that Bruce had been able to disappear into the world and stay on the run for years, and while turning his incredible intellect towards solving the problem had been a great help, this special ability to all but disappear from sight also deserved a lot of the credit. Knowing he had the full power of all of the various American intelligence agencies after him, Bruce had been forced to hone his skills to awe inspiring levels in order to stay free from government imprisonment and experimentation. Even SHIELD had encountered lots of trouble repeatedly keeping up with him as he moved around, and the good doctor's ability to utterly disappear into a crowd had been humbling for some veteran agents. Indeed, one of the most aggravating things for General Ross during his _five year_ long manhunt for Bruce was the number of people who _should_ have remembered witnessing his runaway "asset," but could not recall anything significant about him. That was why Natasha was the agent dispatched to keep an eye upon and later contact him for the Avengers program, because she was one of the very few people who could find Bruce if he chose to run.

 _This is actually pretty similar to when I broke into the Army base to destroy all their records and samples of me_ , Bruce noted. _Hacking an identity for myself, moving about like I'm used to working here and distracted by what I've got to do so none of the guards notice me, and at that time the information I wanted was also heavily compartmentalized too. Only hope I don't get shot this time and the Other Guy gets out_.

 **XXX**

Ten minutes later and three floors down

Actually seeing the "god" from the corner of her eye was actually a surprise for Natasha, and a little disappointing. All other Asgardians she had seen, or had seen recordings of, had been individuals that were best described as "striking." With appearances and a presence that would make them stand out wherever they were. In contrast, the man guy growing in the tank, all she could think of was: "plain." He would have a much harder time getting people to kneel down and worship him without significant coercion. _No wonder he was able to hide out here on Earth, and I guess there are less differences between our two species after all_.

The tall container dominated the room, with a man drifting vertically in a green tinted fluid, with a breath mask on and various attachments inserted into him.

What also held her attention were the tubes apparently pumping chemicals directly into the suspended body, _How far along are they by now? Are those something to keep it (him?) alive?_

Fortunately, that was not her problem; her responsibility was finding the original sample, which would obviously be kept in a secure place that would make any "accidents" harder to justify. The only intel they had was that it was still kept on site to keep everything safely in one place.

Knowing it would not be here in the main lab; Natasha kept walking with the intent of doubling back upstairs to the executive offices once she was out of sight of these security guards, trusting Bruce to handle his own job.

 **XXX**

Main Lab

Glancing at Natasha as she continued onwards, and turned the corner out of sight, Bruce slipped his badge into the security scanner, trusting in the embedded SHIELD technology to get him in past the guards, and stepped into the lab. He did not focus upon the center masterpiece right away, acting as if he had seen it enough times already to no longer be impressed, which made it easier for the other scientists there to continue focusing on their work. Bruce checked a few computer screens to see what they were working on, and even absently gave a suggestion to one of his 'co-workers' which the man quickly applied with a distracted "Thank you," as he made the corrections.

Feeling that enough time had passed for his insertion, Bruce took a moment took a sideways glance at what they were working on, and by sheer will kept walking towards another station without taking another look. Careful mediation practice kept his heartbeat from skipping a beat, and his face remained calm yet bored.

The suspension tank for holding a man shaped figure, along with certain pieces of technology that they would connect with whoever was within the tank.

Familiar technology.

Or more accurately, next-generation versions of devices he had seen before, and had even spent hours poring over in detail with Tony.

[Flashback]

 _"You were right though," Bruce spoke up as he examined the mechanized suits that the Mandarin's terrorists had been working on, "They were trying a variation of the computer support FRIDAY gives you. Interfacing the pilot's brain directly into the suit to make actions instantaneous with thought. It's crude and dangerous, yet involves enough breakthroughs that I'd say that at some point they had access to a genius scientist's notes, and then tried to push forward on their own."_

[End Flashback]

Now Bruce understood exactly why what they had salvaged from the Mandarin's bases had seemed so confusing. _My God, now we know where the Ten Rings stole it from! No wonder so much of it seemed crude, they must've adapted it for the armour because they couldn't develop a decent super-soldier program of their own. These people're trying to grow an Asgardian and then pilot the body remotely with an implant in the brain! And if they can do it once, they'll make more! Expendable super-soldiers that not even Steve can match once they're done with them!_

Another glance at the condition of the Asgardian made Bruce convinced that they were almost done too. _We can't come back tomorrow like we were planning if we couldn't see an opportunity right away; we've got to settle this today!_

Bruce slowly looked around a little more, while conceding that this did simplify any moral concerns, since the scientists had likely lobotomized the clone already to prevent it waking up with anger management issues or existential questions.

Then he noticed how the tubes providing the fluid that was suspending the clone, and the substances that were being injected directly into him, were fed into the back of the cloning tank but were not connected to anything in the room itself. Eyes tracking the path they followed, Bruce saw that the substances were actually piped through the back wall, right beside a discrete door. Slowly and subtly, Bruce made his way over and opened the door and entered the room beyond.

 **XXX**

Side room to the Main Lab

Bruce's eyebrows were raised as he stepped into the smaller adjacent room that was connected to the main lab, and looked over the chemicals that were then fed into the tubes for the clone's tank, while being stored and monitored within this room. _Unprofessional to separate them like that, but probably done to make the lab less cluttered and more appealing to their superiors. Less like reality, more like Star Trek. Same with the inefficient growth tank. Explains why they fixed it for easy access between the two rooms though, so that they could go back and forth quickly if anything happened. Lack of any cameras' a little surprising, yet I guess they justified that by the need for secrecy. Unfortunately for them, that also means someone else could walk in at any time, especially since no one's in here right now_.

Privately, Bruce was confident that with the hand-to-hand training he had been given by the Avengers, along with his own skill at Aikido, that he could easily handle a normal nerd in a fight. Yet he was under no delusions that everything would quickly spiral out of control after that. Very quickly.

'Now then, what do I have to work with,' he muttered to himself, his mind running back to the briefing Natasha had given him on sabotage, and his own experience in labs. Basically this was just the reverse of working safely with scientific instruments. _The clone's got to need a very fine balance for this cocktail they are pumping into him, especially given the extremely fine precision of these measurements being displayed, and the properties of some of these chemicals labeled here. So if I disrupt it, then this project's a bust, but it has to be extreme enough to contaminate the whole body so that even if Natasha destroys the original sample, they cannot try and use any surviving tissue from the clone_.

Then he stepped back to look at the other machines in the room, and finally smiled at a familiar and sophisticated piece of Stark Industries technology. Specifically, it was something that he and Tony had developed together on one lazy afternoon. _And the one that I was still concerned about being a little dangerous if it became even slightly damaged, but Tony argued that adding any more protective measures would disrupt other functions, and that he would just have Marketing slap a big enough warning label on it_.

Bending down, Bruce traced how the accidental Trojan Horse was connected to everything, and saw a cascade failure waiting to happen if some accident happened to his invention, _Such as an accidently spilled cup of coffee that a careless employee placed there, and all they will have are empty suspicions_. Then he stopped before preparing to tip over the cup of coffee in his hand, _Too easy. Calm down the ego and think_. A little probing revealed that someone had gimmicked a personal failsafe to try and make the hazardous machine safe to install, yet Bruce was confident he could work around it without leaving any noticeable traces for them to find, especially once the cascade started. _Now how do I make sure no one runs in here to manually adjust the chemicals to stabilize the clone?_

 **XXX**

A few floors down

Executive Office

Natasha smirked as she finished inserting a video loop into the camera systems, _Guess they don't trust their employees enough to rely on guards more. With reason_ , she conceded. Her little hacking would provide the traitor she was impersonating with an alibi, but she had to get into the room before someone came by and asked any awkward questions, such as why she was several floors up from her workstation.

Locks disabled and the director of this project off somewhere else, Natasha did one final careful scan of the interior of the room with SHIELD and Stark tech she had pulled out from under her clothes. Satisfied, she casually entered and began looking for the hiding place for the Asgardian tissue sample, _If not here, and given by how this room is decorated the man's ego will want it under his personal watch, then at least I'll find a clue_.

Frankly, she was a little disappointed in how easy it was to locate the hidden safe, it was in one of the traditional and yet cliché places behind one of the various pictures, and she did not even have to search them all since a thermal scanner showed which particular picture had a spot behind it that was significantly colder than the rest of the room. A few minutes of safecracking later, and Natasha was looking at the special cooler that was inside, along with the sample she was here for, a small vial with tiny amount of blood, _They've used up more than Bruce expected_.

Reaching between her breasts, she pulled out a vial of her own, which contained all of the useless blood samples that had been collected from the torn up battlefield from when Thor was fighting in Greenwich. _When they check it, it'll look like whatever Thor has in his body to protect Asgard's secrets finally took effect, and that it happened a while ago too, given the light dust on the outside of this safe. They'll still be suspicious of course, yet there will be no proof._ A few scientific tools Bruce had provided let her adjust the replacement vial so that it held the exact same amount as the original, and also irreversibly contaminated the former so that if they were forced to call in SHIELD for backup after all, she could give it to them with the same lie that she was selling to the English.

And then she casually left the room and went back downstairs to check on Bruce.

 **XXX**

Outside Main Lab

Unsure of how to help Bruce, Natasha started remotely hacking the computers inside the lab with her tablet, seeing if there was anything she could do to help. _We'll probably need to get those scientists out for a little bit after all to make sure they can't interfere. Fire alarm is too cliché, and so is "unscheduled security drill or inspection," especially since we are trying to reduce suspicion. Nothing useful I can see here so far thoug—wait_.

Natasha dug a little further into the unexpected file, and discovered it belonged to someone on the night shift, who was only responsible for maintaining the clone's status and reacting to any emergency developments, although his co-workers were doubtlessly complicit. _Guess that explains how it got there, they'd never get a chance during the day shift, but honestly!_ Natasha berated out of professional pride, _This is a highly secure, top-secret governmental facility!_ If this sort of thing had happened in SHIELD, they would have been literally thrown right out of whatever building they were in before the employment termination paperwork had even been printed. If it was a HYDRA base they would be shot on the spot.

 _Just a few adjustments to make it look like a prank a co-worker set up…_

 **XXX**

Side Room to the Main Lab

Bruce was distracted from his thoughts by louds moans and screams of ecstasy from the main lab, so loud that he could hear them from behind the metal door and walls separating him from them.

Sliding the door open a crack, he saw the scientists desperately working to try and turn off erotic pornography that was playing at full volume on every computer screen in the main lab, each of which was playing out a different scene.

"What the—!"

"—the night shift's—"

"Should've deleted it when I first found—"

"Turn it off before management drops in!"

"Don't try to reboot it you moron! We'll lose everything!"

Another glance showed that the security guards that were visible through the lab windows were still standing in position without any visible reaction, _Guess it's soundproof glass_.

Deciding that this was his best chance, and all the women yelling at the top of their lungs for "More! More!" should drown out any alarms loud enough, Bruce stepped back, tipped over his cup of coffee to start the cascade failure, and raced out to join those scientists who were obviously too lonely given how they were ogling what was being portrayed.

The 'prank' not only blocked out any warning alerts that would have flashed on the screens, it also drowned out the insistent beeping noise that was coming from the cloning tank.

 **XXX**

Ten minutes later

"Took you long enough," Natasha noted with a knowing smirk as Bruce joined her around the corner outside of the lab.

"The ones who actually knew how to fix it right away —I assume that was your doing? — weren't really motivated to help out," he whispered.

"No one noticed you leave?"

"They were too busy running back to try and fix the clone to notice me sneak out, but given what colour its flesh was turning, and how chunks were breaking off, I'm not worried about them saving it. And security didn't react when I left."

Natasha nodded and led her boyfriend on the route they would take to get back to the roof.

 **XXX**

Quinjet

One hour later

Masks removed and safely hovering in the air, the pair of infiltrators were busy working to clean up any loose ends.

Natasha hummed to herself as she finished hacking into the security feeds, aided by a little device that she had attached to some hardware before breaking into the director's office, and had retrieved on her way back to the lab after it was done giving her computer tablet free access. Bruce had actually been surprisingly good help in working through what was left of the encryption. "Looks good," she reported. "I didn't even have to erase your leaving the lab before everyone else. Someone panicked and completely wiped all the security recordings to try and hide why they were so distracted when their precious project was dying, but security has already figured out who did it, so no attention on you."

"Cell phone intercepts also show people initially messaging and phoning each other about the clone being a failure, before someone got them to shut up about it and save the classified stuff for until they were face-to-face. This," Bruce added hesitantly, "went surprisingly well. Is it always like this?"

"No," Natasha firmly denied. "We had exclusive technology, a traitor in a convenient position, and lots of luck. Our cover would've been a lot more flimsy if things hadn't been in our favour."

"But we did it?"

"Yes, we did it, you dork," she told him with a genuine and proud smile to reassure him.

"Oh, good," he answered with a beaming expression of his own.

 **XXX**

Streets of London

A few hours later

Natasha had radioed in and let Fury know that they had been given little choice but to destroy the original sample too to avoid detection, and had left the reports she and Bruce had falsified at a dead drop. A quick phone call to the hotel the SHIELD support team was at with a special code phrase got them to stand down from active duty, with their only remaining job being to make sure their inside contact was registered for signing out of work that day, which was easy for them to take care of thanks to some additional computer alterations by Natasha. It was not for another few hours that they were finally done though, especially given how long it took Bruce to write up his report to send to Fury. But now the couple was free to just enjoy a little time to themselves before heading back to America.

They were not really doing much, just strolling through the ancient city of London, enjoying each other's company.

Walking side by side with the man she loved with all her heart (holding hands would have denied her some freedom of movement if she had to draw a weapon on any pursuers), a smiling Natasha headed home.

And a smiling Bruce realized he no longer felt angry all the time, and couldn't remember the last time he had been.

 **XXX**

Secret SHIELD Base

Nick Fury, the ex-Director of SHIELD, felt a small twinge of annoyance behind his impassive mask, but accepted that Romanoff had been given no choice but to destroy the sample. _Better that no one has it. And it saved the Director from having to intervene and send in one of his best teams. This way he can stay focused on trying to uncover what the %^ & is going on with the world's heroes. Good timing too, even if it means it didn't keep them busy as long as I wanted them to. What should I try next?_

 **XXX**

Asgard

Heimdall nodded in approval at what he had observed, and turned his attention back to looking for other matters of note.

 _It is good that they took care of that, lest the King be forced to intervene if those "scientists" became too successful. Thor will be glad to hear of his comrades' actions when he returns. Although, we should contact the commoner soon, to update his body's defenses against aliens trying to use our DNA. Discreetly of course._

 **XXX**

 **Author Notes:**

 **Samuel Sterns was from "The Incredible Hulk" movie. He was a scientist that Bruce Banner contacted to remove the Hulk. After the (failed) attempt to do so, Sterns let slip that he had been holding onto the blood samples Banners had sent him, and was experimenting with them to create more Gamma creatures. Later, when Emil Blonsky (who was already on the Super-soldier Serum) confronted Sterns, Sterns gave him Banner's blood, creating the Abomination. In the process, some of Banner's blood got into a cut on Sterns' forehead, causing his brain to swell up and make him more intelligent. In the comics that tie in, Black Widow captured Sterns and had him shipped to a SHIELD lab (after shooting him in the leg).**

 **I have an idea on who to pair Steve with, but other suggestions still welcome. Granted, sticking with the ladies and taking Natasha off the list removes a large percentage of popular pairings in other fics :-)**

 **The mission for both Bruce and Natasha probably wormed its way out of my mind as a result of reading "** **Sun's Getting Low," by MrsTater.**

 **To my mild surprise, I had help writing about Natasha from a Star Wars fic series, "The Unseen War" by Rigil Kent from the Expanded Universe. There are some interesting similarities between Mara Jade and Natasha Romanoff, especially when they interact with Luke Skywalker and Bruce Banner respectively :-D**

 **I also felt the need to emphasize in this chapter, based upon some questions, that Natasha does genuinely love Bruce, this is not some act she is putting on. If a SHIELD agent tried to order her to take advantage of her boyfriend, she would instantly shoot him/her in both kneecaps and drag them off somewhere quiet for an "enhanced interrogation," later justifying her actions by saying that her prisoner was obviously a HYDRA infiltrator trying to tear the New Avengers apart from the inside, and she could not waste time in finding out if there were any other plans going on. If anyone asked why she did not contact the New Avengers to warn them, she would state that she needed to keep her discovery secret, and then she would ask the questioners why they were so concerned when the infiltrator in question was so busy repeatedly and loudly crying out that he was a HYDRA spy to anyone that would listen. On a parting note, she would delicately ask that no one mention this to Bruce, and then when she gets home that night she would tell him anyways and then wait and see if anyone tried to take advantage of her "concern" about what Bruce thought of her actions. And then repeat with that person, just to make sure the message got through to everyone.**

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 **Recommended:**

 **"When Laura Met Clint," by seriousish**

 **"The Art of Invisibility," by Katla**

 **"Civil War" by Drag0nst0rm**

 **"Protocol" by NeverMessWithTeddyBears**

 **"Cabin in the Woods," by Ezra Cross**

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 **Next Chapter: "Meeting the Family" on the Barton farm! I have a bunch of ideas already down, but always open to suggestions!**

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 **Previous Reviews:**

 **Lupinica friggasdoiter:** Yeah it helped. My penname is lupinica friggasdoiter I'm just having aught login problems. I'm guessing by everyone you mean the marvel gyes, they probably fear a hulk out. Which would be justified and f*** fun to read, because i love hulkouts, but I'll be happy with whatever you want.

 _Whoops, yeah I meant all the Marvel guys, and with reason. Basically the only ones who would not be afraid of a Hulk-out are Natasha and Laura. As for the inevitable Hulk-out, I have been planning that for months! Got the idea from listening to the Indestructible song by Disturbed. And to make things worse, Fury and the rest are going to keep finding bad news :-) Only problem with that scene is that there are only so many descriptive words for "big and strong," "green," and "angry." So if anyone knows any fics with good Hulk-outs, would be appreciated._

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 **Please Review!**


	13. Meeting the Family

For better or worse, Marvel owns all of this stuff, not me.

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Chapter 13: Meeting the Family

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 _Previously: Yeah, Fury is still trying to keep the reveal a secret. Oh, and Bruce and Natasha destroyed a clone of an Asgardian to keep him out of everyone's hands._

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 **Slight spoilers for Doctor Who, Season 6, episode 2.**

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' _The bond that links your true_ _family is not_ _one of_ _blood_ _, but of respect and joy in each other's life._ '

\- Richard Bach

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For the sake of convenience, if it is Laura B, then it is Laura Barton. If it is Laura RB, then it is Laura Romanoff-Banner.

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New Avengers Facility

A few days later

"Boss," Natasha spoke up with surprise, pitching her voice loud enough to warn Bruce that they had company.

"Not your boss, Romanoff," Nick Fury reminded her carelessly, "but I am here to say good work. Pity the sample was destroyed though," he added, his single eye carefully measuring both of Natasha's.

"Thor would get jealous and sulk if we brought someone else on without asking him first," was the breezy retort.

"And we wouldn't want that," Bruce agreed as he walked in with Laura in his arms.

"Well, I'm still glad. About that that is," and now Fury had a stern look on his face, though only Natasha could read the light humour behind it. "You took have been staying holed up in here with your daughter, except for missions. And yes I know you went to Disneyland," he added, cutting off what Natasha was about to say, "but that wasn't your guys' idea was it? If you ask me, I think you guys should get out some more. See the country even. I hear farms are always relaxing."

A smile lit up Natasha's face, and she berated herself for not thinking of the Barton farm sooner, _Laura's going to kill me for staying away for so long!_ and a quick glance at Bruce she saw the affirming smile and nod.

Fury turned to leave the apartment, before glancing back over his shoulder with his good eye, "Oh, and Dr. Banner," Fury called out, and when the bespectacled man looked back, he added in a grandfatherly fashion, "leave the laptop at home. This is not a work vacation." And with that, he strode off down the halls, giving polite greetings to all his former subordinates who worked at the New Avengers Facility.

Fury gave no outward sign of the relief he was feeling, yet he was glad he had found another way to keep those two Avengers busy.

Whatever was going on was worse than he thought, and he was a natural pessimist. The deeper he dug, the more he could not escape the certainty that the New Avengers were being puppets on someone else's strings.

Fury had personally done some research on those supporting the more extreme suggestions on how to deal with the world's superhero population, the alternatives that made the Superhero Registration Act look like the Declaration of Independence in comparison. He had realized that other men and women who could have helped push those proposals forward on a more hardline stance had been strangely silent, and he had investigated further, and realized they were either being coerced, busy with scandals, or on 'vacations' that they had yet to return from.

This was a more subtle approach than all of the deaths that had happened earlier, yet this had thrown even Fury off the trail for a while, and the fact that they (mostly) still alive meant that their silent support still strengthened the stance of the pro-Registration politicians. Consequently, measures that _would_ unite all the heroes and people with powers and push them into opposing their governments, in order to preserve their basic freedoms and even their very lives, were being subtly sabotaged while still maintaining the momentum towards Registration.

The _modus operandi_ of this unknown organization made it seem like HYRDA was behind it, yet the motive did not make sense for them. Previous schemes by the neo-Nazis had actually supported greater control over those with powers, and given their tendency towards moles or using brainwashing technology, they would be more likely to try and maneuver themselves into a position that they would be the ones with authority over Registered superheroes. Failing that, they would try and incite a conflict amongst those with powers as soon as possible, in order to spread fear and chaos that they could profit from. Then they would probably spew some nonsense about greater security justifying whatever new actions were taken, probably offering to sell instruments of destruction and coercion to fund their activities. Moreover, it would buy HYDRA some breathing space when they were already badly wounded, perhaps mortally if something did not change for them.

Yet there was one more chilling discovery that made Fury conclude that HYDRA was not responsible for either the Hulk or these Machiavellian acts: he had discovered was that when the spymaster had gone back over some of his own previous decisions piece by piece, he had come upon a chilling discovery.

The catalyst for outing of HYDRA and its war with SHIELD and the world had been Fury's private investigation of one of the organization's ships, the _Lemurian Star_. Yet the very tip that had made him suspicious of the ship in the first place had come from a source that he had now discovered had died in an accident a few days before sending his superior a note about a vague suspicion he had, which had triggered all the subsequent conflicts and downfall of the original SHIELD. In the chaos that had followed, Fury had assumed – _Idiot! Never assume!_ — that the man in question had just been another of the numerous fatalities from fighting HYDRA when they had been forced to reveal themselves.

 _I need to get more people in on this_ , Fury though fiercely, _this is getting too big, too fast. Coulson's turned his attention towards other dead power players and influential persons, or people who suddenly changed their policies, to help figure out if anything else is going on, but that will be hard to connect together, even for his people. Unfortunately, now that I know someone high up in the original SHIELD was intercepting any reports about all these coerced or dead politicians so that I never saw them, I have to wonder how far the rot still is now._

 _Dr. Banner is still the wild card though. On the one hand, the New Avengers need to know about the potential for more Hulks, or worse! On the other, we can't risk Banner finding out the truth! No, I know what I have to do. I have to tell Rogers. I need the man to trust me for this, and I need the greatest soldier in history prepared for this. Hopefully he has some idea on what to do about Banner_.

Unfortunately the man was unavailable for the next few days since he was tracking down another lead to the location of his childhood friend, Bucky Barnes, so it would be best for Fury to retreat to the SHIELD helicarrier for now before he attracted some unwanted attention.

 **XXX**

Stark Tower

Tony Stark took another glance at the request before him. Reading his mood, and counting the number of empty drinks around him, Pepper finally spoke up, "What is it?"

"Something from some governmental department, I should probably track down which, but they want my thoughts on something from the SHIELD file dump: Project: Centipede."

Pepper's face tightened in recognition, "The one they built off of the Extremis?" Tony nodded, knowing that Pepper had doubtless looked it up on her own on the internet given her own unfortunate experience with Extremis. Unlike a certain billionaire, playboy (retired), philanthropist, she dealt with her issues head on. "You know of course that it's really a probe for how you feel about the Superhuman Registration Act that some of the men up the hill are trying to push. And they'll remember whatever answer you give and try to use it for some end." Still distracted, Tony just gave an affirmative grunt. "Tony," Pepper said firmly in _that_ voice, "what's wrong?"

With a sigh, Tony threw the request down, and plopped down deeper into the soft couch. "Trust issues. I don't suppose you remember my wild, carefree days from long ago?"

Pepper just raised an amused eyebrow, "Did you call yourself old?"

"No!" was the defensive answer, before settling down while he fiddled with his half-filled drink. "When I resisted the government stealing my armour for themselves, and the fact that the senator behind it all was really a HYDRA agent doesn't help the issue, it was because I did not trust them with it. And now they want to do it to me and everyone else.

"I have used to use my wealth and military industrial contacts to get me out of a lot of trouble in the past. I am rich and famous and important so I could get away with that sort of &^*()#."

Tony paused, waiting for JARVIS to chime in, saying something about how it was mostly for public indecency or intoxication, but FRIDAY was still not sophisticated enough for something like that. Besides, Pepper knew the full details perfectly well, and how close he had come to committing far more serious offenses in the past. Like that time Happy charged in and literally hauled Tony away when Pepper called to say that the young lady in question was younger than she said she was. Or when Pepper had literally dropped a highlighted printout indicating the international laws he was about to violate. Even just recently, when Maria Hill had come to work for Stark Industries, she had been the ex-Deputy Director of SHIELD, and yet when agents of the organization were being arrested worldwide, she was safe from the government because she had Tony's lawyers to protect her. Tony's wealth was still letting him do whatever he wanted.

And of course almost no one else in the world had such opportunities.

"I'd like to say I now have a decent moral compass these days," Tony finally continued. "Or rather," he acknowledged with a gesture and a heartfelt glance at Pepper to which she answered with a warm smile, "you have one. But what about everyone else? Powerful people are now afraid of masked vigilantes with superpowers going around. And not as criminals, but people fighting for 'justice,'" Pepper's eyebrow flickered at the conflicted emotions she heard in that last word, "and who then might start getting tired of dealing street gangs and extremists and begin looking closer at the wealthy elite. How many of these 'concerned citizens' and leading politicians calling for superheroes 'to be accountable,' really mean: 'not going after us'?" Then Tony took a deep breath, "And I feel the same sometimes too."

Pepper's eyebrows raised in shock for a moment, before comprehension dawned, "The Maximoff twins."

Now there was genuine pain in Tony's eyes, "Yeah. I made the weapons, Obadiah," he said bitterly, as if even the very name made him sick, "illegally sold them to the people that killed their parents. They spent years blaming me, hating me, so much so that they went to _HYDRA_ of all people to get the power to hurt me. And then all it took was a few charming words from my bastard child to set them in motion."

Pepper said nothing as Tony just laid there, lost in memories. "I understand and forgive them," he finally admitted, "but what's next? Who else will suffer the next time someone tries to make the world a better place, and discover that they have the means to do so? Violently that is. All the new abilities and powerful aliens that seem to be crawling out of the woodwork all of a sudden."

He held up a hand, and turned to face to look at Pepper directly, "I'm starting to ramble, but what I'm trying to say, is: how do we protect the Earth, the people, from other humans? There are people out there, good and decent people, lots of them, that are just plain scared. That sort of thing is can be more dangerous that anything I've created. And then there's Project: Ultron."

Pepper stared in surprise for a moment, before realizing she was referring to the original purpose of Ultron. "You mean worrying about another alien invasion. Getting the world strong enough to face whatever comes next. With no idea when the next big attack will be." Taking a deep breath of her own, Pepper nodded in understanding, "And if everyone was working together on it, preferably with a major governmental power…"

"We'd be more ready a lot faster, and stronger too," Tony answered with firm conviction. "Like Capsicle said, all of us working together as one, to keep the world safe. No handling it off to some AI. And when it comes to defending everyone, we're all expendable if it means keeping they're safe from the monsters in the dark."

"So you don't trust the government to manage all the superheroes, but you don't trust whichever strangers show up next claiming that they are here to help, but you're also worried that we won't be strong enough to handle the next big threat," Pepper summarized. "What about the part about giving up their secret identities to the top governmental officials?" Pepper asked, curious as to how much thought Tony had given other aspects of this broad and controversial issue, but the man just rolled in his eyes.

"What secret identities? Just about all of them don't even wear masks. Everyone knows who they are. Only one with something resembling a secret is Legolas, and Barton's retired." Pepper just silently nodded again as her own brilliant mind worked through the angles, while Tony conceded that Hawkeye had had good reason to keep his family secret. _If Fury hadn't kept his family off all the files, HYDRA would've found out, and've targeted them to hurt or coerce him. We'd need some agreement about the identities, but frankly we could find some way. Heck, just write them all on a piece of paper and hide the envelope somewhere so it's off the computers_.

He was drawn out of his thoughts by the sound of Pepper talking again, "—do you plan to do about it?" Tony just massaged his temple, and fell back down against the couch, no longer looking at his girlfriend. Finally, Pepper decided to address what all of this discussion was really about: Tony's shame. "Ultron made his own choices," she said, trying to alleviate her boyfriend's pain, while showing she understood what he was really upset about.

"But were does the buck stop, Peps? At what point does the creator take responsibility for what he creates? Accountability? I went from guilt over making rifles and missile to a robot trying to weaponized a city! How long does the rest of the world get to stop enduring and shrugging off what happens, and those with all that power answer for what happens!?"

"Don't let your guilt consume you!" She snapped with the iron that she kept hidden under her elegance, and all Tony could do was smile and say "Yes, ma'am!" to which she just huffed.

Silence reigned for a few moments more, before Pepper spoke up, "I've been looking at the legislation and those behind it. Not all of them are bad people Tony, there are a lot of them who are trying to do what they feel is right, or are genuinely afraid for themselves and others. Trust is still an issue here, and a lot of people don't trust the Avengers right now."

"New Avengers," Tony mumbled in correction.

Continuing as if she had not heard him, "But you're right on how it's hard to trust the government with something like this after what happened with HYDRA and SHIELD. Both groups wanted the heroes controlled, so that they could freely run the system they were used to without having to worry about a handful of individuals who might decide to change everything. A lot of the politicians want that same control now, or are afraid of what might happen if the heroes decide the government is corrupt."

Again time passed with nothing being said, before a thought wormed its way up from all the guilt Tony still felt. _The only person I'd trust with this would be myself…_ he admitted.

But then Pepper had walked up and was smiling down at him, with _that_ smile and _that_ tone of voice, "That's enough worrying about it for tonight, okay?"

Grinning, Tony gave his trademark smile, "I do what you tell me to do, not some fat old men sending me letters."

"Got that right!"

As they headed upstairs to bed, Pepper worked to put their previous subject even further behind them, "So any new gossip about Laura?"

Tony flinched at that question, as he realized how the Registration might affect the kid, yet tried to forget about it for the night, "She's got everyone wrapped around her finger! Even Eyepatch apparently, since he sent her and the folks off on another vacation when he didn't even need to!" Pepper smiled even more at that, happy to hear that her two friends were doing so well.

 **XXX**

Barton Farm

Dressed in civvies, Bruce Banner and Natasha Romanoff approached the Barton farm, hand in hand, while Bruce carried Laura RB. The reason for carrying arrangement became apparent as Cooper Barton, the oldest of Clint's kids, with Lila Barton, the middle child and only daughter, came running up to engulf 'Aunty' Natasha in a group hug.

"It took you guys long enough," Laura B scolded mockingly as she came forward afterward to embrace the woman who was practically her sister-in-law, and then did the same for Bruce. Clint just chose to shake Bruce's hand, especially since he was carrying baby Nathaniel Barton.

"Why'd you take so long to come home, Aunty Nat?" Lila finally burst out.

"Well," Natasha mused, clearly embarrassed, "I guess I was so wrapped up in building another home with Bruce and little Laura (RB). I'm sorry everyone, but I'm back now, and I brought my second home with me. And I'm just glad you'll still have me."

Cooper and Lila quickly descended into overlapping cries how the farm would always be Natasha's home, and how glad they were that that she and Bruce were finally here, with Laura B giving the redhead another hug to emphasize the point. SHIELD might have become Natasha's new foundation after the fall of the Soviet Union, but it was with this family that she had found a home, family, and love.

Yet the new mother knew that she would have to be careful around both Clint and Laura B, the only people who might know her better than Bruce. Above anyone else, they would be able to read between the lines of what Natasha was saying, and not saying, and come to unwanted conclusions. Natasha and Bruce were not being evasive because they did not trust the Bartons, but because they wanted to keep them out of this oncoming mess.

To keep the farm a bastion of peace and tranquility in the world.

 **XXX**

An hour later

Clint was smirking as he pocketed the camera, one of the older ones that used film and did not leave any electronic traces. _More pictures for the family album_.

Laura B shot him a chiding look, before smiling at Nat and Bruce playing in the living room with the two babies, with Lila joining in. "The only time I've seen Nat happier was that first Christmas she had with us," she whispered to her husband.

"Yeah," he whispered back, drinking in the sight before him, "Banner's doing great too."

"Of course they are."

At first Clint thought it was just because of having a baby and each other in their lives, yet when he looked back at his wife he saw she was looking into the living room with an evaluative expression. "Huh?"

Her smile was more serious now, yet no less happy. "They're both becoming people who feel they can finally be proud of themselves."

 **XXX**

Later that day

"Truthfully," Laura B confided later that night at the dinner table as they all ate, "my only real complaint about our secret lives here is all the gossip I hear when I'm in town about 'Hawkeye's' love life, when they don't know he's already taken."

"True," Natasha said with a sweet smile, "but if it did come out you could always just tattoo your name onto him! Or just brand it."

"Natasha!" Laura B tried to stay sternly, but could not smoother her return smile.

Despite this, Natasha could not help but think about how many people tried to pair her and Clint together online. _Most women would feel insecure about their husband working with an attractive woman for long periods of time in highly stressful situations, but Laura (B) knows her Clint. That he would never betray her faith in him. Moreover, I would never violate their trust or risk my relationship with either one of them. I would die first. Well, no. Not when it would mean leaving behind Bruce and Laura (RB)._

Meanwhile, Bruce was talking with Clint about how the latter managed to have a life in the area without any of the neighbors or residents in the nearby town figuring out that Clint Barton was actually Hawkeye. It was quickly becoming a conversation about their different methods of staying low key and unseen, and was really interesting for the older Barton children, especially since it was a topic related to their dad's work that was safe to discuss.

 **XXX**

That evening

Natasha was singing a Russian lullaby she had made a point of learning recently as she helped Laura RB and Nathaniel fall asleep. While not particularly attached to her heritage, she wanted her daughter to speak more than just English. The intellectual that he was, Bruce found himself agreeing with such a policy, wanting his daughter to be as prepared as possible. Against what, he did not know, it just made him feel better to know that his daughter was smarter than any other baby. That's what he believed, and no one felt like discouraging the proud father.

"I hope it doesn't confuse Nathaniel," he whispered to Clint, but the ex-assassin just shook his head.

"Shouldn't be, and Nat will hopefully be around enough that he'll still pick up some. The other kids can speak a few words too. And we told you to call him 'Nat,'" Clint chided at the end.

Natasha paused for a moment, "'Hopefully,' Barton?' she asked flatly.

"Laura (B)'s your first priority," the archer responded without any give in his voice.

"Excuse me, but my daughter is not going to grow up without knowing her Uncle Clint and the rest of her family!"

"Yes," Bruce confirmed with a relaxed smile, which Clint matched as he said, "Yes, ma'am."

 **XXX**

Later that evening

That night was a bad night.

Practiced ears drew Clint to Natasha's room at the sound of thrashing from her nightmares, yet was surprised to see a different sight: Bruce Banner rigidly upright, looking as if he was hyperventilating, even as Natasha was clinging to him like a lifeline.

A quick hiss brought Laura B after her husband, and the two of them entered the room to help their guests.

Clint chose to help his ex-partner, stroking her back while whispering reassurances, yet noted how her attention was mostly on Bruce, to whom his wife was also whispering that everything was okay, everyone was safe.

Reaching out to confirm that it was Natasha who was clutching at his side, Bruce started to calm down, although Clint hoped Laura (B) missed the green tinge that had come to the scientist's eyes.

Slowly, ever so slowly, the Barton's eased the couple back into bed, tucked them in, and stayed there for a few minutes more, watching Bruce and Natasha hold onto each other, and listened to the sound of their breathing to make sure it sounded healthy again.

Clint embraced his wife, gave her a small peck, and they went back to bed. Each morning on the farm was always a busy one after all, and they both needed their rest.

 **XXX**

The next morning

With the coming of the dawn, the Barton household was witness to a violent assault.

Devoid of mercy, the villains pounced upon their prey.

Laughing along with them, a refreshed Natasha wrestled with her niece and older nephew as the two jumped upon the bed to wake her up, as per long tradition. The far heavier sleeper, Bruce, was awoken to these strange noises, along with the sensation that someone small was sitting on him. "This is the woman who's famous for nearly killing that agent who woke her up in the morning?" he murmured in a daze.

Natasha just playfully dug her elbow into him, "Oh, I knew he was there beforehand. I just wanted to make sure the boundaries were clear."

Bruce just smiled along, "Well, I'd try and rescue you from this, but," he jerked a thumb at Lila who was the one on top of him, "they've already caught me."

"Children," Laura B's voice could be heard from downstairs, "breakfast!"

"She means you and Bruce too, Nat!" Clint added loudly, the glee in his voice clearly evident.

"Ooh," Natasha said with fake scowl, "go get him you two!" They just sat there, looking down at her with inviting grins. "Alright, I promise to do more training with you today."

"Yay!" they both yelled, and ran for the stairs.

Chortling, Bruce fell back into his pillow, and then bounced back up as a Natasha's elbow dug back into him, yet harder this time. "Please don't mention work like that," she asked sternly.

Bruce hesitated for a moment, and remembered how Natasha had warned him about how she and Clint tried to divorce themselves from their work while at the farm, _especially_ the dirtier bits. "Sorry."

Relaxing back into a smile, Natasha leaned forward and gave him a light peck, "Don't worry, it wasn't serious." And truthfully, Bruce could really see the difference in Natasha when she was at the Barton Farm. Before, he had only ever seen her this carefree and relaxed when she was around him and Laura RB. Yet this was the first place where she had learned how to let her guard down and be happy.

Accepting in turn what was, for her, a light apology, Bruce settled down. "You know," he said thoughtfully, "it was nice seeing you like that."

"Hmm?" Natasha said quizzically.

"Just…just letting go like that. You're the same with our daughter, and even me," Natasha suppressed a frown at how Bruce was still having a little trouble accepting he was in a relationship with her. "Yet that was first time I really saw you do it with other people like that."

"They're family," Natasha said simply, "and no, I didn't really understand what that meant until Clint brought me here. Now come on, Laura (B) wasn't kidding, and we've got to check on _our_ Laura (RB)." And with that, she fluidly flowed out from the covers and walked towards the open door.

"Wait, just one more thing."

Natasha readily turned around to look her boyfriend in the eye, yet she had a smirk on, "I'm just closing the door so we can change," she explained with a lightly mocking tone.

Bruce gave a small wince in embarrassment that that Natasha just wanted to kiss away." Sorry. Again. What I wanted to say is, in a few years, you'll be able to play like that with Laura (RB)."

Natasha's face blanked as she processed that thought for the first time, and then her whole face lit up like the sun. She crossed over to kiss Bruce on the lips, and then looked him firmly in the eyes with her lip curved up in her characteristic smile as she spoke affectionately, " _We'll_ be able to be like that with Laura (RB), and don't you forget it, dork."

Bruce returned the smile and then the kiss.

And then Cooper and Lila poked their heads back in, "Eeewwwwww!" "Nasty!" "Daddy! Bruce's sucking out Aunty's face!"

The Black Widow just collapsed down with laughter, with Bruce chortling along underneath her.

Down the hallway and in the baby room, Clint was changing Laura (RB)'s diaper, a smile etched on his face too.

 **XXX**

After Breakfast

Bruce watched with mild interest from the porch deck as Natasha ran her niece and nephew through a series of martial arts kata.

His own training in Aikido made him recognize some of the forms he was seeing, and realized that Natasha was teaching the kids primarily self-defense moves. Many of the woman's techniques involved using her opponent's strengths against them, usually in a manner that let her snap their necks, yet here she was teaching the kids non-lethal alternatives.

"Are you planning on teaching Laura (RB) that sort of stuff?"

Bruce did not even react in surprise at Clint's unexpected question from behind; living with Natasha had made him used to people walking around him unseen and unheard. "That's the plan, teaching her to keep herself safe."

"Yeah," Clint agreed, with a glass of water in his hand and a light sweat on his forehead that indicated he had just come back from some chores. "Make sure you don't go too far though."

"Hmmm?" Bruce asked curiously.

"Laura (RB)'s going to grow up to be the daughter of the Black Widow; you have to make sure she doesn't try to follow in her mom's footsteps."

"So no Hawkeye junior in the future?"

"Do I look that irresponsible?" Clint scoffed. "Kids aren't even going to touch a real bow around here. Ever. Lila knows basic gun safety, but that's because of how I have some guns and bows stashed around the farm for an emergency, and she knows to _never_ touch them. _Ever_. Natasha can tell you about that. As for Cooper, he's older so he's been taught how to shoot a gun so he can defend himself, and I'm weirdly happy to say he's just an average shot for someone his age with that amount of teaching. What about you, hoping Laura (RB) goes into science or medicine?"

"Either's fine," Bruce mused distractedly, thinking some more on the archer's advice, "just so long as she's happy."

"And safe," Clint corrected, "they have to be safe and happy."

Bruce nodded in agreement, and turned his attention back to making sure Laura (RB) was sleeping well

 **XXX**

The next day

"Whatcha reading?" Bruce inquired towards Cooper, as the boy was resting on the sofa with a thick book in his hands.

"I'm rereading the fourth Harry Potter book. What'd you think of it?"

"Oh, I never really read that series," Bruce said abashedly, unsure if the books had come out while he had been burying himself into studying gamma radiation, or later when he was on the run from the US government.

"Ah," Cooper nodded sagely, "you watched the movies," he concluded, in a tone that implied he was forgiving Bruce for some misdemeanor.

"Sorry, haven't seen those either."

"What!?" Natasha cried out in mock horror from where she had been eavesdropping. "Get him, Cooper!" she cried, and the boy obediently pounced upon the hapless doctor and grabbed him. "No boyfriend of mine," Natasha said in faux stern voice that had Cooper giggling, "is going through life without knowing what Harry Potter is!" She pushed Bruce down on the couch, and went to fetch Lila.

Later, Clint snatched another photo that depicted Natasha sitting on the couch reading 'Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone' aloud to the blinking babies, Lila, Bruce Banner, with Cooper sitting on the floor and his head resting against an armrest while he also listened in.

 **XXX**

Professional embarrassment aside, Clint was working to try and read the clues behind the interaction between Nat and Bruce that he had missed before, so that he did not have to keep going to his wife for advice on his best friend's love life. And one thing that struck him, once he recognized it, was how close Nat let the other man get.

Nat had grown up in life of violence, and was very strict about the boundaries of her personal space. If a man, or woman, got too close to her, she would hurt them. One of the first signs of the amount of trust she had granted Clint had been that she would let the man (accidently) brush up right beside her to point something out on a map. If he had not earned her trust by that point, sometime after the mission was completed, the archer would have 'accidently' dislocated something.

There were no boundaries to be seen with Bruce, Nat was perfectly happy to have the man close by her. In fact, she would even lean in closer to him.

 _Treasure the gift you've been given, Bruce_ , Clint silently ordered.

 **XXX**

A few days later

The Barton's were rather strict about making sure their children did not watch too much TV. Instead, they worked hard to always have interesting books available to read. The only channels they received were for the news, and they actually still had a VHS player. Although after some time staying in the Avengers Tower, Clint had finally yielded and bought a DVD player for some very particular shows, which were kept to the side only for watching at specified times. One of those authorized shows was 'Dr. Who,' since it depicted a hero who tried to save the world without violence, which was a life Clint was trying to encourage. And right now the kids were re-watching season six with Aunty Nat and Bruce once they had determined the recluse was not familiar with that series too, while the two babies were asleep upstairs.

The Doctor had just infiltrated the alien base with his comrades to rescue his main companion, and bedazzling his victims with his words, "Ah now, stay where you are." Panning to the rest of the heroes while the Eleventh Doctor pauses dramatically, "'Cause look at me, I'm confident. You want to watch that, me, when I'm confident. Oh, this is my friend River. Nice hair, clever, and has her own gun. And unlike me, she really doesn't mind shooting people. I shouldn't like that. Kinda do, a bit."

"Thank you, sweetie," River, the woman that the Doctor had so much romantic tension with, replied, her ray gun never quivering as she took in the foes surrounding them.

Returning his attention to the enemy, the Doctor continued to move around until he and River now had their backs to each other to everyone in sight, and continued with his speech, "I know you're team players and everything, but she'll definitely kill the first three of you."

"Oh, the first seven, easy," River corrected with a ghost of a smile, even as she kept her weapon trained upon all the aliens.

"Seven, really?"

"Oh, eight for you, honey."

"Stop it!" the Doctor told her, even as he matched her smile and visibly rubbed his back against hers.

"Make me!" a definitely suggestive tone to her voice.

"Oh, maybe I will!"

At that point their friend who had been captured and tied up interjected with annoyance, "Is this really important flirting? 'Cause I feel like I should be higher on the list right now!"

There was more to the episode, but Bruce and Natasha were distracted by the little gazes drilling into them, and the accompanying snickers from the kids. "What?" Natasha finally blurted out.

"They're just like you two!" Cooper laughed out. "Bruce just needs a bowtie!"

"Bowties are cool!" Lila managed get out amongst her own giggles, overruling Bruce's protests that he was _nothing_ like the Doctor.

 **XXX**

Busy pub near the New Avengers Facility

"How long've you known," Steve Rogers ground out in frustration.

"Stark put it together a little after the baby first showed up. And before you go on about secrets, I was hoping this was all a false alarm. I was fooling myself, but you can appreciate why, right?" Nick Fury sternly answered to the anticipated response. That was why they were in public, to keep Captain America from acting rashly and blowing their cover. It would also only take the paragon a moment or two to realize that their location meant Fury was concerned about the security of the Avenger's new base despite the secrecy, defenses, and counter-surveillance it had. That was why Fury also had a discrete little device out to stop anyone from eavesdropping in any way.

Taking a deep breath, Steve ran his mind through what he had been told. _Laura's not part of this directly, Wanda would have said something now, 'cause I bet she's already used her powers to 'read' the baby. Stark's a genius and Fury would want concrete proof before talking to me. That said, they can't really prove this to me since I didn't really understand science much even back in the past. …No, there's no motive for Fury's lie about something like this. This is too potentially explosive. Unless it's a test. No, we've got enough trouble going on right now as it is, and he knows it._

 _We've got to start planning for the possibility of fighting Hulks, and actively search for whoever is behind this, no matter how cold the trail is. I don't want to keep secrets from Bruce or Natasha, so how do we break it to them? Wait…all those missions…Fury has been keeping them busy to keep them from finding out. That means he has some plans in motion, he always does._

Taking a deep breath, Steve locked both eyes with the one hard one staring back, "What're you planning? Because we both know we can't keep this secret. We have to take the initiative, and we need both Natasha and Bruce for this."

Fury let long sigh, and seemed to slump into his chair, his gaze softening. "That all depends, Rogers."

Figuring Fury would otherwise just leave him hanging in suspense, Steve took the invitation, "On what?"

"On whether or not domestic life has helped them enough."

 **XXX**

 **Author Notes:**

 **I have nothing against Clintasha itself, I just have a problem with any pairing that takes Clint away from his family on the farm. Not just because it is canon, but because I thought it was such a great thing for his character. As for the part about it being irresponsible to teach a mini-Hawkeye, I like Kate Bishop and the Young Avengers, yet this Clint is clearly different from the comics version.**

 **One of the mildly annoying things about writing for the MCU Civil War, is that one of the main points of contention in the comic version does not work as well, specifically the issue of superhero secret identities. Only a minority of the heroes have secret identities or families they want to protect.**

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 **Recommended:**

 **"** **Taking a Chance," and the sequel "A Hole in the World" by theicemenace**

 **"** **The Gray Areas," by KaydenceRei**

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 **Next Chapter: "Wedding"**

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 **Please Review!**


	14. Wedding

For better or worse, Marvel owns all of this stuff, not me.

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 **Spoilers for season two of Agents of SHIELD, and episode three of Doctor Who, season seven.**

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Chapter 14: Wedding

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 _Previously:_ _Fury uncovered even more troubling discoveries about the Hulk and the Avengers, and convinces Bruce, Natasha, and their daughter Laura, to go stay with the Barton family for a vacation, which also keeps them from making any discoveries of their own. Everyone at the farm has a wonderful time._

 _Meanwhile, Tony Stark slowly edges towards Registration…_

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 _'Coyote never loses. Because I change the rules of the game my enemies play. What are the rules of your game?'_

–Coyote, 'Mercy Thompson: Frost Burned,' by Patricia Briggs

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' _If you don't like the rules_ - ** _change the game_** _._ '

–Tarvek Sturmvoraus, 'Girl Genius,' by Phil and Kaja Foglio

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For the sake of convenience, if it is Laura B, then it is Laura Barton. If it is Laura RB, then it is Laura Romanoff-Banner.

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A week later

Barton Farm

"Aunty Nat?"

"Yes, Lila?"

"Laura (RB)'s your daughter, right?"

Natasha nodded and smiled in agreement, choosing to not complicate the situation, while faint warning bells were going off in her head. Since they were not as off-guard from enjoying the tranquility of the farm, and possessing well-honed senses from countless confrontations with their daughter, both Clint and Laura B were instantly alert.

"So does that mean you and Bruce are married?"

The couple stopped and blinked, and since Natasha was the first to recover, "No, no we are not."

"But why not?" the little girl in a voice that dripped with innocence.

"Lila," her father sternly spoke up, "does this have anything to do with re-watching 'Cinderella' last night? Or how you were asking about flower girls?"

"Nooo," she claimed, though even Bruce was feeling suspicious as he struggled to resist the hypnotizing effect of that adorable face Lila was wearing.

"Well, why aren't you guys married?" Cooper asked curiously. His parents were quickly trying to find an explanation for how couples could be together and yet not married, when Natasha impulsively shifted to look at Bruce.

"Doctor Bruce Banner, will you marry me?" she asked seriously.

The scientist was stupefied again, but then beamed one of the happiest smiles in his life, "Yes Nat, I will," and he leaned over to kiss her with as much passion as he could muster.

On the floor, Laura RB gave a happy squeal, either at the announcement or having just gotten her toy blocks just right, and clapped her hands, sealing the affair.

Cooper and Lila joined in the cheering, and Clint turned to his wife to discuss about that local minister she was friends with.

 **XXX**

The next day

Local church

The formal union of two of the most dangerous people on Earth was a small and quiet affair in a humble church in the middle of nowhere.

The only witnesses were the Barton family, since there was no question that they had to be present for the wedding of Natasha Romanoff and Bruce Banner. No one else could be present because the safety of Laura and the kids depended upon secrecy, and no one other than the original Avengers were allowed to know of their existence. Laura was initially a little guilty about this, but Bruce just reassured her by saying that his 'Science Bro' Tony would love the chance to splurge on a wedding. Apparently the man had never been invited to one since that one time he got drunk and got a little too friendly with the bride (his bodyguard, Happy Hogan, had to carry Tony out for his own safety before the ceremony was done), and did not have any other friends who were interested in getting married anytime soon. Natasha agreed with this, and added that if the billionaire was uninterested, then Pepper would still make him pay for it.

Nick Fury would probably be disappointed to miss out on the original ceremony, yet the man was deliberately hard to find. The second one with the New Avengers would be more appropriate since he would have ample opportunity to show up.

As for the local minister who was officiating the private ceremony, his lack of interest in the news kept him from recognizing the faces in front of him, and Clint had put in considerable effort ensuring that no one in town would connect him with the infamous Hawkeye. All the kindly, elderly man knew was that that Clint Barton's lovely young friend who came by the farm occasionally was getting married, and he was happy to help.

Clint instinctively stood in a corner of the groom's dressing room, keeping one eye on the door, and the other on Bruce as he sized the man up while he awkwardly tried to knot his tie. As time had passed on the farm, Clint had begun to see some resemblance between his wife and Bruce. Or rather, that characteristic that had first attracted him towards his own wife and soulmate, and what had later led Nat to the nerdy scientist. Both Laura B and Bruce were the kind of good and decent people that the Black Widow and Hawkeye had risked their lives to protect. Willing to sacrifice themselves so that civilians like them could have a safer world.

Of course the metaphor broke down a bit given how Bruce was no longer a 'normal' civilian. Still, it was clear how much love and support Bruce received from Natasha, someone who worked to make sure he stayed a part of this world, and did not try to run away from it. It was also amusing how Laura B was ganging up with Nat against Banner. Specifically how both woman were working to keep drawing the shy man out, and keeping the scientist from folding in on himself when anyone who was not his girlfriend entered the room, such as the few times they had all gone to the nearby town for shopping trips and interacted with the people there, or their neighbours, who were all blissfully unaware of who they were talking to.

Natasha believed in Bruce Banner, and made the man have faith in himself.

Yet relationships were a two way street, and Clint had been straining all of his training, and repeatedly consulting with his wife for advice, to see what Bruce did for Natasha. Just being a friend would have been enough to satisfy Nat's desire to see men and women prosper in the world that she had bought in blood and pain for them. And not all of the down payments had been from other people either.

And Clint approved of what he had seen.

"Hey Bruce," the archer finally said.

"Yeah," the scientist answered nervously either because of what was about to happen in a few minutes, or because he figured he was about to get 'the Talk' from Nat's 'older brother' about treating her right.

"Thanks."

"For—?"

"I don't really know when you guys first started getting close, guess probably those late night talks or watching those old movies, but I understand it a lot better now." Clint could read the small twitch on the older man's face that said: 'And Laura (B) helped you along.' Ignoring this, and how close Bruce had already become with the Barton family, Clint continued, "Whatever it is you did, you finished what Laura (B) and the kids and I couldn't. You helped her accept that she wasn't a monster; that she didn't deserve to keep hurting herself with all of the guilt and trauma that she used carry, festering away inside of her. The only other time I've seen her as happy as she is when she is around you, is when she's at the farm, because she trusts you, and because she knows that you believe in her. You probably know more of her secrets now than I do.

"And I've seen Nat pretend to be in love with someone before, several times, and she never looked like this. Never had that look in her eye's that she does now.

"So, I guess what I'm trying to say, is thanks for making my partner and best friend believe in living her life again."

Clint paused for a moment, visibly worked up the effort to say else, and finally let it free, "And now that you're her new partner, you take care of her and your guy's kid, you got me?"

"I understand," Bruce answered, and quickly turned around, yet not before the ex-assassin noted the little pricks of tears in the man's eyes, and the happy and relieved smile he had.

 _Some people just gotta have it spelled out for them_ , Clint concluded.

 **XXX**

Another part of the chapel

Laura B did not even bother trying to hide her proud smile as she watched Natasha finish preparing for her wedding, remembering those times she had warned Natasha that one day she would also find someone in her life that she would love beyond measure. At the time, Nat had been dismissive of the idea, saying it was not going to happen, believing that no one would or could accept a woman like her. _Or worse_ , Laura B admitted, _she felt that she did not deserve such happiness. But look at her now!_

Natasha refused to wear a dress, yet conceded to a white pair of slacks and a white blouse, yet she still carried it with a graceful elegance that still made her seem like royalty. She did assure Lila that for the more formal wedding she would probably be wearing a beautiful gown, and while they had not gotten a ring, the little girl was still going to be the flower girl.

"You'll look lovely Nat," Laura B reassured her, "and you'll have lots of pictures to show us after the second one!"

"We'll save you some cake," Natasha promised, smiling at how Lila giggled in glee while Laura mock frowned at the idea of more sugar in the house.

A quick knock got their attention, and Cooper spoke up from the other side of the door, "Everyone ready?"

 **XXX**

"—for richer, for poorer—"

"—in sickness and health—"

"—until death do us part—"

"And I'd just drag you back," Natasha added with a smirk.

"I look forward to it," her love smiled back.

Lila struggled to keep silent, and both Cooper and Laura B tried to get Laura RB and Nathaniel respectively to focus on the ceremony, while Clint smiled at both the scene and at the thought of what would happen to whatever poor slob who tried to intervene for the cliché 'speak now or forever hold your peace' part.

"I do."

"I do."

"Then you may kiss—" before the minister could finish, Natasha had grabbed Bruce by the lapels and pulled him in to seal their union, "—the groom," the older man finished with a chuckle.

And thus a new step in the story of Bruce and Natasha Romanoff-Banner had begun.

Yet unnoticed by the happy adults, Laura B's face was briefly filled with naked speculation, as she realized she had seen a sense of desperation in that kiss that the two had shared, and Laura B felt that several pieces of a puzzle had just fit together, and she did not like the picture she was now seeing.

 **XXX**

Barton Farm

That night

"When are you going to tell the others that you're already married?" Laura B asked in a knowing voice, and something else in her tone made Clint turn around and send an evaluative look at his best friend and her husband, all of which told the newlyweds that they had been caught.

With a small sigh, Natasha just answered, "Let's make sure the kids are in bed first."

Later, they had both explained their concerns about the upcoming conflict between heroes, and what their plans were.

And the dangers they were facing.

"So," Clint concluded, "you're not going to tell anyone about being married, because it offers another chance to bring everyone together, at a second wedding ceremony, which you'll pretend is the original one."

"Yeah," Bruce confessed. "We need everything we've got. It's just a matter of finding the best time to spring it."

"And I need to buy a big shiny ring to propose to you with," Natasha said with a fond grin.

Clint smiled a little at that, yet then his face turned serious, "You guys know—"

"You're staying here at the farm," Natasha interrupted, her orders final and unyielding.

Then Laura B briskly walked over to the newlyweds, and embraced them in warm hug, "Stay safe you two," she whispered, "Laura (RB) deserves to have her parents. You two deserve to have each other."

"If anything goes wrong—" Natasha started and then paused.

"If anything goes wrong, you two are the godparents," Bruce finished, and Laura B just tightened her grip on the two of them.

 **XXX**

Some days later

Now knowing exactly what a new and dangerous game his best friend was playing, and what she had already done and was planning to do next, Clint found himself halfway through another one of his home improvement projects without even knowing how he had gotten there.

Given the look on Laura B's face, she had been saying something about how he had promised to not do any more after Ultron was taken care of, yet he knew she was okay with it. Or rather, Nat would keep him from starting any renovations that were too inconvenient for everyone else living in the house.

 _No_ , Clint conceded. _I'm also upset because I never saw how things could potentially end up in a war between Tony and Steve, or between some other powered people taking their place. And I know that they'll feel tempted at some point to try and involve me. So I get what Nat and Bruce are trying to do, but will it be enough?_

As for Laura B, she was wondering when, or if, her sister-in-law (in name, if not blood) would ever be given the chance to leave her life of violence behind. Nat's baby girl should have been her chance, yet even now after Ultron, everyone was still in too much danger, especially Laura RB; the perfect hostage for two of the world's most dangerous people. " _When will it ever end for them?_ " the housewife wondered sadly.

 **XXX**

Asgard

Heimdall calmly took note of other developments on Midgard, systematically searching for any signs of unexpected technological developments or person's with noteworthy abilities. Wakanda had been removed as a suspect thus far, for while they had the technology to theoretically create all these anomalies surrounding Doctor Bruce Banner, they lacked the motive. Moreover, an in depth examination of the nation by the all-seeing (mostly) eyes Guardian of Asgard had revealed absolutely no evidence that they were engaged in anything Heimdall had not already been aware of beforehand.

There had been some interesting drama recently though, over Paths to the Worlds Within Worlds, or what the humans called 'Pym Particles.'

Apparently an elderly genius had lost his monopoly upon the science that he had developed decades ago, and had desperately worked to reclaim it from his former protégé. The scientist had done so because he was afraid that while the technology apparently had infinite potential from improving the human race, it would first be used for devastating warfare. The old man's fears were more accurate than he knew though, for while a few individuals could use the technology safely, there was a good reason why very few galactic powers experimented with that branch of science for too long after discovering the effects of dabbling with the Worlds Within Worlds.

Specifically, the old man thought that the safety features of his suit could alleviate the mental deterioration from exposure to messing with the Worlds Within Worlds, but in truth it was simply because he was one of the very, very few individuals who were not affected by even a brief encounter with the Paths. Attempts to weaponize the element would have led to widespread mental instability that would have been disastrous. Even worse, there was no known way to predict who could safely use them. _Truthfully, Dr. Pym was more fortunate than he knew, unknowingly finding one of the rare individuals who could safely use the technology. Safely for both Scott Lang and those around the man, despite the_ other _hazards about it they have yet to discover_ , Heimdall mused. _In fact, it is astounding Pym found so many able to safely use the Paths to Worlds Within Worlds. Is it related to their being members of the Nine Realms? Something else I am sure the King and Prince will want to be informed of when I tell them of this new 'superhero.'_

The most powerful civilizations could alleviate the unfortunate consequences of mass utilization of that particular brand of science, yet they all preferred to just used the related properties to make their spaceships function more smoothly; reducing the weight of the ships while increasing their strength and density. Their advanced security measures also meant that no one could use the ability to shrink an individual in size to try and sneak in somewhere undetected. That being said, it was still impressive how fast humanity had developed that science.

 **XXX**

It was days like these that Loki really felt like cursing how the Nine Realms had developed.

Asgard, Vanaheim, and the other more developed worlds had conquered the starways with advanced technology and magic, rising to a pinnacle the universe had never seen before (according to the history texts of the Nine Realms at least). Afterwards, they had deliberately lowered themselves down to a more simplistic life, carefully hiding their greatness under a more humble lifestyle.

There were many reasons for this, ranging from being more environmentally sustainable, avoiding the slovenly kinds of lifestyles developing in the 'Western world' on Midgard right now, and even a sense of pride. That it was a message to the universe that they were so powerful that they could afford to turn away from photon handguns, and go back to swords and shields.

Albeit, swords that could cut through almost anything non-Asgardians had, and shields that could repel all but the most advanced weaponry. They had also made a point of keeping the 'giant death-ray' (as humans would call it) that could strike anywhere in the universe.

And frankly, it was also a good way to solve one of the most challenging aspects of their immense lifespans. For when you can live for thousands of years, boredom becomes a bit of an issue, especially since even the lowliest Asgardian possessed formidable powers that also had to be diverted towards something constructive. So the ancient rulers had made it so that people had to ride around on a slow horse, and spend all of their time taking proper care of it, instead of driving around in a car straight to their destinations, to help keep them occupied. Same with making them stone masons, herdsmen, etcetera.

Despite all this, Loki _really_ wished he could just have a nice fancy communicator like the other races used so that he did not have to keep walking down to see Heimdall, or so he could yell at Thor to get a move on back to Midgard! It had been two months since 'Odin' had sent the oaf's friends to go get him!

Or maybe so that Jane Foster could call Thor up and say she was lonely and wanted him back for the night, so that he would stay there! Or something!

 _Breath, Loki, breathe. Don't let it get to you. It would be a useless gesture anyways. I've subverted too many communiques to ever trust one myself. I should just go write some brilliant policy, that'll help my stress relief_.

 _And I cannot be seen interfering with the oaf's investigation anyways. His lead is too strong for me to easily justify diverting him at this stage, yet I also risk him finding out too much about Thanos and the Infinity Stones! If only I had some agents of my own on Midg—_ Loki's derailed in shock.

During his failed conquest of Midgard, Loki had utilized many human puppets controlled by the power of his scepter, with Doctor Selvig and Hawkeye being the most obvious examples. Yet he had still controlled a veritable army of mercenaries, enemies of SHIELD, scientists, and some more brainwashed SHIELD agents.

 _If Barton doesn't remember what exactly he advised me to do with them, put them into hiding as a final precaution, it might work. The only question is, no, two questions, are they still alive and ready?_

 _And second, are they loyal to me, or to Thanos who gave me the scepter?_

Then Loki paused in thought, and the eyes beneath his glamour hardened into green ice. _And third, how did I forget about them?_

 **XXX**

New Avengers Facility

"Agent Hill?"

"Yes, Fury?" the woman responded, not even blinking as Fury spoke from behind her in her private quarters. It was no surprise that the man was able to infiltrate the base after all.

"There are some operational matters we need to discuss. Specifically, the possibility that Romanoff may become increasingly invested in operations and command efforts, as opposed to field work. I just want to make sure that preparations are in place to smooth out such a transfer."

Maria Hill immediately understood that Fury was concerned that Romanoff might decide to stop taking active missions with the New Avengers, and instead find ways to be useful by staying back at the base where she would also be able to help Dr. Banner raise their daughter. It would be hard to refuse such a request, given how the New Avengers, Fury, and Maria Hill were well aware that the woman was scary brilliant, easily capable of simultaneously taking on several important duties back at the base. Even while safely working behind a desk, she would still be able to significantly contribute towards ensuring peace and freedom throughout the world.

Moreover, if Romanoff proved herself capable of becoming an even more senior member of SHIELD, and she would, than it would also put her in a position of power to provide even greater protection for Laura; Romanoff had been quite serious about her violent and graphic threats (which had been rather original for even a veteran SHIELD agent), even if those warnings had been more for the sake of establishing a precedent for future officials and team leaders.

Unfortunately, there were two serious problems with letting Romanoff becoming more involved with the inner workings of SHIELD, specifically that if she took up such a role, it would be impossible to hide certain secrets from her. When she had been a member of the old SHIELD, hiding facts from the Black Widow had been possible because she had not interacted with anyone outside of then-Director Fury, Captain America, and Hawkeye, removing her from the gossip circles. Moreover, she had answered directly to her boss, and had no reason to think he was keeping any secrets from her that might have been a concern, and there was precious few things that could upset her after all the trauma she had already endured. Keeping Hawkeye in the dark for certain secrets had been more difficult, but again it rested on his unyielding faith in Fury.

Unfortunately, Romanoff was no longer the woman she had used to be, and the slightest hint of some of SHIELD's two main secrets from her would have her following the trail like a bloodhound. And she was very liable to start biting some fleshy parts if she dug deep enough.

"This isn't just about the truth about the Hulk is it? You're also worried about her finding out about Coulson. Or should I say, Director Phil Coulson."

Fury just gave a grim nod. "The New Avengers need to trust each other for them to function, to avoid the mistakes of their previous incarnation, and Romanoff's past means she'll always be a little suspect to some of the members. More importantly, we can't put her in a position where she might feel tempted to keep a secret from Banner, lest it put a strain on their relationship. And if she does tell him, they'll both figure out that Stark and I've been encouraging Dr. Banner to help out against the Mandarin in order to keep him away from his lab so that he wouldn't figure out it wasn't an accident on his own."

"And that you've also been lying to them about Loki murdering Agent Coulson, including to Romanoff and Barton," Hill added without visible concern. _She_ understood why her boss did it, and even approved, but the ex-deputy director also knew that the Avengers, Old and New, would likely be unable to appreciate the bigger picture, and where they all stood in it. Once upon a time, Romanoff and Barton would have understood the necessity of the deception as well.

And in all fairness, the Coulson _had_ died. It was just that Fury had added some extra drama to the man's failed skirmish against a god to help motivate the heroes into working together so that they could save the world, and then omitted mentioning how a few days later Coulson was up and breathing again.

As it was, Hill was the only SHIELD operative at the New Avengers Facility who knew that Coulson was the new Director of SHIELD, everyone else just assumed that it was still Fury, and the ex-director had personally vetted everyone working directly with the New Avengers. It had cost the wider organization some valued assets, yet most of the agents were those deemed unsuited for continuing to live in a world of shadows, deceit, and violence (psychological profiles, physical injuries, etcetera), so everyone was in agreement that it was a worthwhile tradeoff.

"I needed to give the Avengers something to tie them all together, and I don't regret lying to them about the baseball cards. And you know now why it was as important for Phil's sake to not let the truth get out at first, as it was to not taint how all those heroes came together. And if it did get out, I didn't want anyone to be able to accuse Romanoff or Barton of keeping the others in the dark."

Hill suppressed a small wince at how she had almost blow Fury's careful work by trying to get Coulson a job in the private sector, preferably with Stark. Fortunately for everyone, the unassuming agent had continued his crusade against HYDRA, since he was one of the few people who had really understood how dangerous the organization still was at the time, despite being outed after Steve Rogers had lead the assault that had trashed their helicarriers. Once Coulson had been promoted by Fury to be the new, and secret, director, the one-eyed man had then let her in on the full truth of Coulson's resurrection.

Their new boss had apparently been uncharacteristically angry when he had finally confronted Fury on the matter after he finished unraveling the mystery with the help of his personal team.

"And if Romanoff retires from active field work and works from home, then she'll likely learn the full truth, and a lot sooner than we'd appreciate," Hill finished, voicing the obvious. "I feel sir," Hill continued, "that we should work to convince Romanoff that she will be better suited to remain in the field for the near future. I'll see what I can do."

Having confirmed they were both working on the same page, Fury turned around and silently left.

 **XXX**

Elsewhere in the New Avengers Facility

"Thanks for this," Wanda Maximoff said to Sam Wilson sincerely, the man's experience with helping people with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder was a lifesaver as she was still working to get better after Ultron, a person she and her brother had trusted, betrayed them both and killed her twin.

"Like I say," Sam responded, "in our line of work, some stuff we leave behind us, other stuff we bring back home with us. It's our job to figure out how to carry it. Is it gonna be in a big suitcase or in a little man-purse? And it's up to each of us to decide which one it's gonna be, but I'm always here to help you do it."

The Scarlet Witch nodded in agreement, feeling flickers of the Falcon's own thoughts, his own traumas that he carried around.

"By the way," he added, aiming to change the conversation to a more relaxed topic, "have you heard anything from the lovebirds and their kid?" With a sigh, the young woman shook her head, "Yeah, I miss them too," Sam agreed.

"Having Laura in our lives has been good for all of us," Wanda conceded. Sam just gave a small grunt of agreement, a small smile on his face. "What?" she asked, a little amused at the how he seemed to be trying and failing to hide a secret.

"Well, it's also that Bruce and Natasha have been working to help make sure we all bond with her," Sam explained. "I don't think Steve's realized what they're doing yet, but family is really important to helping people heal and come together," the former therapist explained. "And I'll bet those two have been acting on that, bringing us all together by bonding with Laura, and helping all our individual scars fade."

Wanda blinked in surprise at that, and recalled the strain of the early days of the New Avengers as the old guard had mostly split apart over the strain of the last week they had endured, despite how amicable the farewells had been. In contrast, everyone had become far more cohesive once the baby had appeared in their lives, and then smiled in return, "Good, we need it," she agreed, knowing that they all had to stay strong together.

"Yeah, we spend so much time fighting now, but even if it's a little cliché, they're working to remind us what we're fighting _for_. Oh, we never actually forget," he elaborated, waving his hand at the objection Wanda was obviously about to bring up. "All of us are willing to lay down our lives if it means everyone else can be safe. But, well, none of us really have families anymore, right?" Wanda slowly nodded in agreement, and realized how little she actually knew about Sam's life from before he had met Steve Rogers, "But all of us living here with a baby that we're all helping take care of and raise, it really hits it close to home. Laura provides us with a personal connection, showing us every day what exactly we're fighting for: a future for her and all the other little kids like her, living in a world free from maniacs trying to conquer or kill them."

Looking back on all the activities that Natasha and Bruce had been involving the New Avengers with, Wanda was forced to concede that the therapist was probably right. "I guess the original Avengers got too caught up in other stuff to focus on that enough," Wanda surmised.

 _When I showed them their worst fears or memories, maybe it was so easy for me because most of them were still struggling to find something to…_ Wanda struggled for a moment with her next thought, " _believe in? No. Fight for? No. They just, lacked…_ something _that they needed to believe was in their futures. Either because of what haunted their pasts, or because of what deep inside they feared was yet to come. Laura and her parents are helping us find whatever it is we need so badly, and uniting us into something stronger, healthier, and more lasting._

"Although," Sam chuckled, deciding the conversation had gotten sappy enough, "I think that Cap's kinda glad that Natasha hasn't been around for the last week or so!" This time Wanda understood what the man meant immediately, and broke into giggles herself.

For the New Avengers had been keeping busy while the ex(?)-assassin and scientist were absent. They had helped bail out two SHIELD operations that had gotten in over their heads, helped cool down some tense situations were certain individuals had suddenly manifested powers (one teenager had even been arrested by the police after he had healed someone hit by a car, the morons), and had lent some aid to NATO for a few other missions.

But what had been especially noteworthy was an attempted assassination attempt against Steve by some intelligence agency or terrorist group (the exact organization had not yet been confirmed) using a honey trap and a fake hostage taking. Steve had rescued the victim, and discovered she was seductive brunette who looked just like Peggy Carter during the Second World War, and who had made it clear that she was ever so _grateful_ to be 'rescued' by the hero. Unfortunately for the assassin, Natasha had taken steps to verify that her friend and leader would not be so easily distracted. She would likely tease Steve a little when she found out about it, yet would still be proud at how fast the woman was rejected, disarmed, and thrown into a jail cell. No, it was what happened next that was hilarious.

"When she learns that they misread his reaction and then tried to seduce him with a _male_ assassin—!" Wanda laughed out.

"And what happened with the whipped cream," Sam agreed, laughing almost as hard as he had when he had been there personally, "and the chips!"

"She's going to have so much fun making Steve miserable when she gets back," Wanda agreed, glimmers of tears in her eyes. Even Vision had been talking to her about how the Black Widow would be salivating with opportunities to torment Steve once she heard about it.

And speaking of Vision and what was motivating them all to the keep being Avengers… _I wonder if he's free tonight?_ Wanda wondered.

 **XXX**

Barton Farm

A few more days later

Bruce and the kids were sitting down for another episode of Doctor Who, and as the episode progressed, Mr. Romanoff-Banner increasingly felt as if something was squeezing his heart.

Mrs. Romanoff-Banner was busy helping Clint with some more renovations, stating that she was trusted for the more delicate stuff, so it had only been Bruce had been free to join the kids, so he was the suffering as he watched a metaphor for the challenges he and his wife faced unfold before his eyes.

The Doctor had become torn between helping two men, and aiding either one of them could damn his soul, with only a little time to make up his mind before even more people died. While the consequences might seem a hyperbole for new viewers, his chief companion was obviously concerned, and previous crises had made it clear how important the opinions of the humans the Doctor traveled with were in keeping the last Time Lord from becoming a nightmare that overshadowed the universe. And throughout the episode, Bruce felt that it was just like how he was caught between Tony and Steve, and the steady countdown towards Registration that he saw before him.

Finally, after some emotional soul searching and conversations that even a distracted Bruce had to admit were impressive pieces of dialogue, the Doctor found a solution, a third option when he recognized what rules he was working under and being restricted by, and broke them with a little science and trickery. And the day was sav—

Bruce's heart stopped. The vice inside his chest was now gone, yet he still could not breathe for a moment.

Then his heart started again and flooded his brain with blood as he puzzled his way through a solution, while the dormant part of him that was a mad scientist began to stir. It puzzled through the clues and opportunities before his mind's eye, searching for that solution that would save everyone that Bruce just _knew_ existed.

That night, he talked it over with Natasha in bed until they realized dawn had broken. Clint and Laura B took care of Laura RB for them while they got some more sleep. Later, "Clint, we need your opinion on something," Natasha asked brightly, once she had gotten two hours sleep and some coffee into her (Bruce was still passed out).

Yet it was not until two days later when Bruce watched the Doctor Who episode 'Cold War,' that he knew exactly what to do. He also freaked out the children with his happy yelling, woke the babies up crying, and had to give a hasty explanation to the other adults in the house.

It took another day to convince everyone that he had not gone insane, or worse, in Natasha's opinion, gone Tony Stark, yet soon they all agreed that it sounded plausible and sane.  
Two days later, the Romanoff-Banner's packed up from the Barton Farm and went back to the New Avenger's Facility, heads held high with their new plan.

Time to save the world.

 **XXX**

 **Author Notes:**

 **Struggled with the wedding a bit until I reread part of 'A Place on Earth' by Katla. And of course, the reference to old movies and late night talks is a common element to a lot of Brutasha fics. That said, I have only ever been to one real wedding…and it was in a baseball field…fifteen years ago. So yeah, no useful real life experience. Hence why it might seem a little rushed.**

 **Wanted to use Doctor Who for the opening quote, but the best 'break the rules' lines for the Doctor tend to involve mild spoilers for critical scenes, and I absolutely loath any spoilers for that series. Vague descriptions of episodes I will accept, but I put my foot down on this to not feel like a hypocrite.**

 **For the Ant-Man reference, I thought 'Paths to the Worlds Within Worlds' seemed like a good Asgardian term for Pym Particles, after how they call device that generates quantum fields a 'Soul Forge.' If you have a better one, feel free to send it; I can always change it.**

 **Also, for Loki's little self-reflection, remember in the first Avengers movie how he had a small army and a bunch of scientists working for him? Well I started wondering: what happened to them? And, if SHIELD did not grab them, what might they have been up to all this time? :-)**

 **When I slowly pieced together what Bruce and Natasha are planning from other sources, that Doctor Who would be the inspiration for them came from the novel 'Ex-Heroes' by Peter Clines. One of the main characters was a perfectly ordinary man who gained powers like Superman in an accident, and maintains (mostly, it is a pretty grim world) the classic morals and ideals of the Kryptonian. This hero's motivation for using his powers to do good came from a childhood growing up watching the adventures of the Doctor, an idea I just love.**

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 **Recommended:**

 **'Clause for Women, Children, and Infirm,' by Books of Change**

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 **Next Chapter: 'Charting a New Future,' a.k.a. 'Team Spider'**

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 **Previous Reviews:**

 **Guest 1:** I like the story it is very interesting.

 _Thanks! I'll try to keep it that way!_

 **Guest 2:** I LIKE THE NAME OF THE NEXT CHAPTER and i love the comparison of bruce and the doctor even though i dont watch doctor who. well written, i love it as usual!

 _Thanks! Hope this chapter lived up to your expectations! Yeah, when I re-watched that scene I could not help myself, and it helped set things up for what they have planned._

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 **Please Review!**


	15. Charting a New Future

For better or worse, Marvel owns all of this stuff, not me.

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Chapter 15: Charting a New Future

a.k.a.

Team Spider

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 **Going to start going a bit AU for Season 3 of Agents of SHIELD. After all, they are very concerned about the mysteries involving the Hulk and the New Avengers, and solving that is a priority. Plus, other forces are in play as well.**

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 _Previously: Concerned about the possibility of a hero civil war, both Bruce Banner and Natasha Romanoff resolved to prevent such a conflict in order to preserve the peace for the sake of their daughter, including increasingly the feelings of companionship amongst all the heroes, such as by taking a picnic with everyone in the mountains of India._

 _During a break from their covert activities, even as they raise a young daughter and help out the New Avengers, the two went on a vacation to the Barton farm, where they were secretly married, and Dr. Bruce Romanoff-Banner came up with a new plan to help the world._

-0-

 _'You mean to tell me you **never** imagined it might come to this? Did you ever **consider** that a **war** might be for the **best?** That perhaps humanity's **only chance** is for the superhumans to swallow **each other?** '_

—Batman

 _'Don't give me that! The deliberate taking of human —even **super** -human—life goes against every belief I **have** — **and** that **you** have. That's the **one thing** we've **always** had in **common**. It's what **made** us what we **are**. More than anyone in the world, when you scratch everything else away from **Batman** , you're left with someone who **doesn't want to see anybody die**.'_

—Superman

'Kingdom Come,' by Mark Waid

-0-

A week after returning from the Barton farm

New York

Generic residential district

Black Widow glanced at her miniature tablet, confirming through the surveillance feed that the older occupant of the house she was now within would still be adequately delayed. More than enough time for her to have a discussion with the other resident living here, for whom she was patiently waiting for in their own bedroom. The super-spy also took another look at the various portfolios she had left out for him to read after she had departed, and did another assessment. _Yes, after I've so effortlessly invaded his privacy and home, he'll be appreciative, of sorts, that the first article is a list of suggestions on how he can better protect his elderly relative, and other loves ones, in the future_.

Soon she was rewarded when a tired person in a bright costume pulled himself in through the window and into his room. Distracted from a long day, he had already pulled off his mask before he noticed her, shock quickly followed by recognition, and his eyes hardened into the look she knew he kept hidden under his disguise, under his sense of humour and quips.

Dedication. Purpose. An undying will.

The eyes of a warrior.

"Gooday Mr. Parker," she said with a small smile, as she walked forward in her cat suit, highlighted by the blue lights on it, "I was hoping to have a private word with you?"

"In a teenager's bedroom?" Spider-Man quipped, while subtly repositioning himself to attack if necessary. His response was a little surprising given how he was supposed to be a bit of a fanboy for the Avengers, but she _had_ intruded into his personal life.

"Sorry, but I've got a green-eyed boyfriend waiting for me. I'm here on his behalf as well though, for you see, we need your help. We need to be able to save a lot of lives and stop a bunch of killers from fighting, and we could use some more friends."

 **XXX**

Later

After promising to leave Parker alone, regardless of his answer, Natasha Romanoff-Banner headed back home. Mysteriously changed into nondescript civilian clothes and wearing discreet make-up that changed her appearance, she drove her rented black car towards the airport which would take her to a town near the New Avengers Facility.

She had figured out the identity of Spider-Man on her own by examining SHIELD reports, and had then sabotaged the Avengers and SHIELD's own files to keep them off the trail. Bruce was probably doing the same even at this very moment to whatever information Stark Industries had gathered, taking advantage of how the Tony had, as had been his habit over these last few months, enthusiastically called over his 'Science Bro' and Laura to work on some joint project for the day. Tony had apparently learned about some new breakthrough in electrons that he wanted to get Bruce in on. They had wanted to get started right away, but Bruce had found someone else he wanted to talk to first.

 _It wasn't easy to alter the records though. Parker's parents were good SHIELD agents, and someone might still connect the dots from just their personal memories of them. Hopefully they will buy the new story I planted: that HYDRA was behind their deaths, not Soviet operatives, and that their agents doctored the files to help hide it. Although, I'll have to tell Parker the full truth up front, and the cover story, if he shows an interest in helping us though. No secrets_.

If she was given to expressing her emotions, to anyone but her closest friends and family, Natasha might have frowned at her next thought. _And we'll have to tell him that I'm actually married. Though revealing that I was in a relationship, and that little hint may be enough for someone like him to figure out that it is Bruce, which he should take as a sign of how much faith I'm putting in him. Even if I did lie by saying Bruce was just a boyfriend. But I'll apologize and explain myself, and then tell him the full story if he joins us; which of course will really show how much we are entrusting him with. Just some harmless manipulation._

The couple had decided to recruit Spider-Man for three reasons: a) he was powerful, b) he was a true idealist like Steve, and c) he was not a killer. In fact he seemed to be deliberately toning down his attacks out of fear of hurting someone. The lack of blood on his hands was appealing because he offered the potential to become another role model for heroes, which was especially important because the general public is aware, at some level or other, that even if it was to save the world, all of the other heroes were killers. Also, the way Parker cherished life meant the teenager might actually be unsuited for either the more militaristic Avengers, or whatever government program Stark was inching towards becoming a part of if the Registration legislation got through.

His abilities would make him invaluable to the government if the Superhero Registration Act went through, yet his own moral code would make him hesitant about accepting orders freely. Especially once he learned that disobedience could lead to serious consequences for himself, his family, and maybe even his friends' families; Spider-Man was not someone who took threats lying down.

It was not so much that the young man was a rebel, but he was a person of conscience and who valued family above all else. Ergo, eventually he would be given an order that he could not ethically obey, and then some idiot would make a vague threat towards his family. And then Parker would strike out and find himself firmly on the side of the 'rebels.' _A fact I was careful to make clear, if subtly, in those files._

Helping Captain America would be a dream for the teen, fulfilling fantasies he had probably had since becoming a super-hero. Yet the question remained if he was willing to take the steps that outright confrontation with the government and ex-Avengers might lead. The teen, boy, was not a soldier, and would be hesitant about fighting other 'heroes,' and people he knew were just trying to do what they thought were the right things to do.

Hence why Natasha was offering him a third option: a team dedicated towards stopping a conflict from breaking out, including intervening in any fights between two or more factions.

Parker had given no promises, his response mainly being asking if her boyfriend had a spider-theme too, and if they could call themselves 'Team Spider.'

 _He tries to deflect people's attention, keeping them from focusing on him with all those bad jokes. I wonder if he consciously does that to keep everyone from realizing how intelligent and potentially dangerous he really is, out of instinct, or if he really has self-esteem issues?_ Natasha wondered, acknowledging how she had been trained to use her body for similar results.

Regardless, she and Bruce had taken another step, and Parker deserved the chance to help contribute to making sure that there would be a safe and free world for his own generation to enjoy.

 **XXX**

Peter Parker/Spider-Man's room

Peter Parker, a.k.a Spider-Man took a moment to collapse onto his bed and wait for his heart to stop pounding.

 _Sooo, fact check._

 _#1, super-hot super-heroine in a catsuit was waiting in my bedroom for me._

 _#2, said super-hot super-heroine wants me to help oppose a government decree that she is afraid will come up. Being a vigilante is one thing, but the way she described this superhuman registration act –and she left a copy of the main points of these proposed Sokovia Accords my bedtable where I can't miss it! –it will be coming from all the way from both the UN and the White House! So I'd be going from ignoring the police's authority to opposing the president. That's treason, right?_

 _#3, she believes that opposing this decree will probably lead me to at one point fight against Iron Man or Captain America. If I'm really lucky, I'll be fighting both of them at the same time. Yay! Not!_

 _So, Parker, you've got the great power, but what is your proper responsibility here?_ "

Peter Parker took a deep breath and resumed peeling out of his Spider-Man uniform. _I guess I've got to take a deep breath and think this over. What the Accords stands for, what do I stand for? No, wait, first find out what I can about it on my own. Verify all of this._ "

 **XXX**

Boston, United States of America

Secret HYDRA Base

"Asset, got good news for you."

Sergeant James 'Bucky' Barnes of the US Army, formerly the Winter Soldier, carefully schooled his features into his blank 'Asset' façade, and only then turned around to stare at HYDRA officer. "Sir?"

"We finally found someone who can fix your busted arm, so we can have you back in the field again once we get them here."

Bucky just kept his face impassive, while cradling his battered robotic arm closer to his side. After a moment, the woman he was facing just nodded and left.

 _Just a little more patience_ , Bucky reminded himself, _just a little more. Stevie wouldn't like it if you had just a bunch of dead bodies for him. Besides, live prisoners to interrogate will help reassure people you haven't gone off the deep end. That you aren't a heartless killer anymore_.

It had been close though, for Bucky had nearly been driven insane by the process of remembering who he had once been as he agonizingly pieced his former life back together.

Still, one did not survive Dr. Arnim Zola's experiments and torture, live to be sole survivor of that sadist's super-soldier experiments, and be the only man to continuously resist HYDRA's brainwashing attempts even as it had advanced for over sixty years by being weak willed. It had taken everything he had, but the man who had once been Sergeant Barnes had triumphed!

That was not to say he was cured, Bucky was self-aware enough to realize that, but he had reached the point where he was not afraid of relapsing and trying to kill Steve. As it was, he still suffered from bouts of severe depression. In fact if not for a certain friendly lady on the street one certain day, he might never have pulled himself out of a particularly black moment.

Bucky also remembered everything now, though he found it hard to describe how he could only recall what he had learnt and done while under the mind control. The best analogy he could think of came when he watched something on one of the television's he had been looking at in a storefront, that he could 'see' it all, but not 'feel' it. That he was somehow apart from the events being displayed.

His personal version of rehabilitation had taken about a year, starting at the Smithsonian Museum. He had learnt enough there to get him started, and he had retreated to Boston where the information at the museum said he had been born, and there he had lived amongst the homeless to continue his self-therapy. Covert trips to a library, he did not trust the internet, had helped fill in the blanks more, including figuring out what the consequences of his helping HYDRA had been for the world.

 _No!_ he berated himself, _it wasn't me! I didn't 'help' HYDRA! It was them and their %^ &* mind control!_

He had to keep telling himself that.

Once he had finally reassembled himself enough, Bucky had been about to go find Steve to finish the process. He had finally reached the point where he was sure he was no longer a threat to anyone – _Unless they are HYDRA_ —, and more importantly, Bucky no longer felt crippled with shame at what his hands had done without his consent. He knew that Steve would still be disappointed that he had not come home sooner, yet Bucky knew that he would be forgiving. That he knew Bucky understood that Steve was concerned about him.

And then he had stumbled, almost literally, across a HYDRA cell.

Beforehand, he could have taken them all down with ease, yet a year of hiding had made his skills a little rusty. All he had done during that time was deal with some of his fellow homeless people who got too far out of line, so Bucky had decided to try a bluff before resorting to violence. Gambling on how his actions at the end of the battle over Project: Insight had not been in the media, he had claimed that he had been told to go dark and await for orders, and had been waiting for over a year. Then he asked if the men and women before him had orders.

They had quickly taken him in, and Bucky had been just about to bring them and two other cells he had learned about in over to the authorities, when he had caught whiff of what they were working on when he overheard a certain conversation. He was no scientist, and had a very limited education compared to someone his age in this modern world, yet he knew how important some of those scientific terms were. There were just enough key words and phrases to make him decide to stick around a little longer. For something like this, he had to make sure that all the angles were covered, and that anyone else with this knowledge was hunted down.

An 'accident' had damaged his robotic arm too much for him operate in the field, and the scientists in the cells did not have the proper expertise. Claiming that this hampered him too much, Bucky was excused from any missions that might lead him to kill people, and yet allowed him to maintain constant access to the base. _Still, I've only pulled this off for so long because they_ want _to believe I'm still HYDRA, because I've already nearly killed Steve and his lady friend, and they hope I can get it right next time._

 _They're getting desperate now. For years HYDRA was the puppet masters, enjoying the euphoria of manipulating world events and feeling the satisfaction of how no one knew about them. They assumed they would overthrow SHIELD and take control of the world with ease, but instead they lost. They're hunted now, and they've lost a lot of agents and all their original leadership throughout all this_

 _I'll contact Steve just before my arm is to be fixed, so that I can help them take the cells down the moment my arms works again. I'll even wrap the boss here up in pink ribbon with a bow for Steve, and stick a 'Sorry for not coming back sooner' card on her._

 _Of course, I still need to think of something for Black Widow to apologize. Not my fault, shooting her twice, but I think it would be appreciated more than trying to dismiss the issue. Hopefully Steve's figured out by now what you're supposed to get dames these days for stuff like that_.

The realization that he had gone for seventy years without a date, and had spent the last year living on the streets or in a secret base, merely made it harder for Bucky to maintain his cover.

 **XXX**

Two Days Later

Pym Household

Scott Lang, the Ant-Man quietly returned to the house after Luis had revealed that the New Avengers, specifically Falcon, were trying to track him down and recruit him. His mind was so abuzz with this information that he almost missed the voices talking living room.

Without missing a beat, the ex-thief soundlessly crept forward to listen in.

"—I don't care how many times you say it; the Ant-Man was just a tall tale."

 _That's Dr. Pym_ , Scott thought, noting from familiarity that the man sounded a little stressed.

"Perhaps," a younger voice answered calmly, although Scott knew it could be an act, "but the Pym Particles are well documented by SHIELD."

During this Scott had been putting on his special headset, and sent orders to the ants he knew would be in the room to make some movement to alert his mentor to his presence. There was a slight pause, which Ant-Man interpreted as the scientist noticing the ants, before a reply, "So you're working for SHIELD now, Dr. Banner? Last I heard you were on the run for what you did in Johannesburg."

Scott's heart stopped.

In the next room over was the man labeled by many as perhaps the most powerful, and definitely the most dangerous, of the Avengers. A man who was infamous for his recent rampage through an African town which was probably the place Pym had mentioned. Scott was one of those who were inclined to believe that the Hulk mostly fought the bad guys, and that the Avengers were telling the truth that the Hulk had been mentally influenced into attacking, that he was still a hero. Yet that did not change the fact that even with Ant-Man's abilities, it was unlikely he could defeat the green giant if it came to a fight.

Granted, the Hulk would have a hard time hurting him in turn, but neither could Scott protect the doctor if things got violent. _Where's Hope?_ he wondered with concern, and then noticed ants flying over to him with his miniaturized suit. _Ah, downstairs monitoring this_. And with that, Ant-Man quickly returned his suit to its proper size and silently put it on.

Meanwhile, Dr. Banner was calmly answering. "They did help get those charges dropped, yes, but I'm not here for SHIELD, or for the Avengers. I'm here as a fellow scientist. I'm worried what's going to be happening in the future, and I'll need help to make sure everything turns out alright. And you know how dangerous the world's becoming, Dr. Pym," and Scott hesitated for a brief moment at that, hearing the deadly seriousness in the guest's voice. "In just a single minute I came up with thirty ways your technology could revolutionize the world and make it safer, cleaner, and healthier. You've been sitting on it this whole time because you know that it's too dangerous to be let out into the world. But people know about it now, and they'll want to control the Pym Particle, so the question is, what are you going to do?"

"If you're here to tell me what I should do with it, I'll save us both some time by saying I flushed that technology down the toilet years ago," Pym snapped.

"I'll just leave these here," and a miniaturized Ant-Man entered the living room just in time to see an unassuming middle aged man put down some portfolios and stand up from the couch. "Thank you for the tea." And with that he left.

Just as he walked out the front door, Bruce paused as his phone rang. Checking the call display, he saw that the number was blocked, but he answered it anyways, "Hello?"

"Good-day Doctor," the voice of Nick Fury answered. "You wanted to see me?"

"Yeah, could you please drop by tomorrow at the Facility? It's kind of important…Yeah, too sensitive to risk for a video conference…Okay, thanks. Oh, and I was wondering if when you sneak in, that you could also bring the following SHIELD agents…"

 **XXX**

Unknown Location

"Any news on the Pym Particles?"

"They're playing it cagey for now, but they'll get involved soon enough. It's in their nature. And once Ant-Man steps forward, we'll have our opportunity."

"Given how one side has Stark, and that we expect 'second chances' Rogers to be on the other, Scott Lang'll probably be on the anti-Registration forces," the first speaker mused.

"Yes, although I wish we had some more information to work with for our behavioural model for him."

"We'll improvise if we have to, but we still need the Particles. They'll be invaluable if used in the proper hands."

There was no direct response to that, as if the other individual thought that it was unnecessary to comment on what was plainly obvious. Instead, "Unfortunately there might be a complication. On the same night as the incident, I believe HYDRA agents were present and planning to make a purchase from Pym Technologies. When I investigated deeper, I found something disturbing: it is possible that HYDRA has suffered far more significant loses than anticipated during their war against SHIELD."

"How so? Even when we stopped Project: Insight and revealed them to the world, they should've still had the manpower to keep fighting, and more importantly, develop more advanced weapons and Enhanced soldiers. That's why we didn't reveal them sooner."

"It appears that SHIELD recovered faster than I gave them credit for, rallying around a leader who's managed to deliver significant blows to HYDRA's leadership besides the loss of Alexander Pierce and Baron Strucker."

"Fury?"

"No. After what happened, even if he faked his death, it would require someone else. Someone who's equally ruthless, but without such a stain on their record. Maybe Victoria Hand?" the speaker mused.

"Very well, we'll look at it later. For now though, I'm concerned with your information about this taskforce the US government's creating: the 'Advanced Threat Containment Unit,' for dealing with people with powers. I'm not so sure that we can control them as readily as their political masters, and at this stage I don't want any more players involved."

"Alright, how soon can we take care of them?"

 **XXX**

The next day

New Avengers Facility

"Capsicle!"

Pausing mid-step, Steve turned around and strolled up to the awaiting Tony, surprised to see the other man here, and both powerful personalities were exposed as they measured each other with their eyes. Then Tony dropped his gaze for a moment and then jerked his jaw towards a nearby empty room, "A word?"

Surprised by the uncharacteristic behavior by Iron Man, Captain America gestured for the man to go first and dutifully followed and closed the door.

"You know about the Registration legislation people are trying to push through, even if it's still a few years off," the tactless billionaire began.

"Yes. And I've been working on it. All of the Avengers have been working on it, to make sure it doesn't gain any more support."

"But you'll fight it if they try to stick you under governmental control. Legally at first, and with outright violence if they force the issue," Tony stated, emotions bubbling within his voice.

Feeling the line being drawn on the ground, Steve just gave a quick nod, his face hardening as he waited for what his friend had to say next.

"We'll lose."

Captain America opened his mouth to say something and before freezing in place, then hesitantly asked, "'We?'" he quoted.

"You. Me. Everyone," Tony snapped out as he started to pace, gesturing with every word, "Laura!" he finally yelled. Iron Man stopped, wishing he had his helmet on to hide his face, but settled for facing away from his friend. "You remember that picnic in India, right? Bruce springing that basket on us, Natasha's corrupted him obviously, and all of us just sitting around having fun? We all had good times before, when Thor was here, but never like that. Never so, so together! I don't want to ruin that memory. I don't want to be the one to face being asked," and then Tony switched to a high-pitched voice, "'Uncle Tony, whatever happened to Uncle Steve?'" He paused for a moment, and then continued in a far more serious tone, "I want us to get through this. All of us."

Taking a deep breath, Iron Man turned to look Captain America in the eyes, "Together."

Without a trace of doubt, Steve walked forward and gripped Tony's hand, "Together."

"We'll have to find some compromise for everyone. Won't be easy."

"We'll be fine. We've always found a way so far."

And then the moment was lost as the door opened, and both men let go of each other.

"Hey, guys?" Sam called as he stuck his head into the room, "Bruce's called together a meeting."

"A meeting?" Tony repeated quizzically, turning to Steve for elaboration, but the icon just gave a confused shrug.

"Yeah," Sam elaborated, "and a bunch of SHIELD guys are here too, including Fury!"

"Oh, this should be good," a worried Tony murmured, and Steve nodded in agreement, his own fears about what Bruce could have discovered surfacing.

 **XXX**

New Avengers Facility

"Y'know, Capsicle," Tony said in a tone that failed to sound casual, "I think I'm feeling a little more sympathetic to how you reacted when I went all mad scientist." Rogers failed to respond, still trying to wrap his brain around what he had just heard.

 _I was hoping for Banner to say distracted_ , Fury mused, _but this…the possibilities…_

"The problem the New Avengers are facing," Natasha calmly lectured to the assembled heroes and SHIELD agents, "is how we are perceived. If this works, we change the world, we do something that no government could do, or _would_ do despite what they'll try to claim afterwards. If this succeeds, we'll be completely rearranging the playing board by introducing new elements that will be redefining both the New Avengers and the world itself.

"Make no mistake though; we're all going to have to be onboard for this. Even those who can't contribute to the initial stages will be occupied, and publicly, dealing with the aftermath. Or more accurately, those of us here who are more suited for fighting," she meant killing, but that would be impolite to those who did not like to focus on that part of their lifestyles, "than scientific support."

"That almost sounds like we're creating an incident for the sole purpose of good publicity," Steve sternly said, in a manner that was just short of being accusatory as they returned to issues that he was familiar with.

"No, we will be doing something good for the entire planet, and if anyone wants to abuse that, we'll just be ready."

 _She's rarely this eloquent_ , Steve reflected to himself, _this is partially rehearsed, but given who she is, that will only emphasize to those who know her how important this is to her and Bruce; showing how much thought and effort they have already given this_.

 _This is so much bigger than anything Bruce or Romanoff have ever worked on before_ , Pepper Potts pondered, _is it because of Laura?_

"Dr. Banner," everyone turned to look at Vision, "if this fails, we could very well render humanity extinct."

The bespectacled man finally spoke up, preferring to let his wife handle the public speaking until now, "Doctor's Eric Selvig and Jane Foster agree that this can be done safely," the indicated scientists nodded enthusiastically, while Bruce took a moment to glance back at his hands before looking up again, "and I'm sure that the bright people of SHIELD will help us take care of all the safety measures, redundancies, and everything else. We'll not proceed until _everyone_ here is satisfied.'

"Although we do have a short window of opportunity," Selvig spoke up, "so we have to get started now. Right now."

"Doctor," one SHIELD scientist hesitantly spoke up, "if we get this wrong—"

"—then I may just end up being the last human alive. I know."

Everyone was saved from having to respond to that when the Black Widow smacked Bruce on his shoulder to chastise him for his negative comment. Turning back to the worried scientist, she chose a smile she had designed to put fellow SHIELD agents at ease to help them temporarily forget she was a ruthless assassin, "Look at their work before you worry about that. We've just thrown all of this at you, so let's meet again here in two hours and see what you think then after looking through their notes."

"She's going from abusing you to smiling at other men, watch out Banner," Tony called out jokingly, to which Natasha just gave a mock glare and Pepper lightly slapped her boyfriend's shoulder to scold him in turn.

"Maybe I like it," Bruce added in good spirits, which raised a flood of surprised looks threw everyone off, either from those who thought he was serious and were wondering what this implied about the Hulk, or from those reacting to Bruce showing an uncharacteristic sense of humour.

"Alright, let's all take a look at this and get back here to discuss it more," Steve broke in, not wanting this conversation to continue off-track any more.

 _Banner must've been the inspiration for this idea, and she's the one making it work_ , Fury concluded. _She doesn't want Stark involved for just his money or tech, but to show unity, and Captain America has to be on board because she trusts his decisions. The man's ability to lead and inspire will be crucial afterwards if this pays off; not to say what heroes can achieve, but for him to tell the world what humanity is capable of._

 _The Avengers, who'd've thought?_

 **XXX**

 **Author Notes:**

 **My version of Peter Parker was highly inspired by 'A Bigger Universe' by Lu4409, even though there are a lot of differences between our two characters. Also, Lu4409 also helped me with putting the finish touches to the plan the Romanoff-Banner's will unveil next chapter.**

 **I know that in the comics and most fics, and the eventual film, Bucky is still really traumatized and damaged, but I thought that someone who has already shown such impressive levels of will and discipline might be able to help himself more. The lady that he mentioned who helped him was just a normal person who showed him a small kindness that made a big difference. Oh, and he has had no past romantic relationship with the Black Widow.**

 **As for the people talking in the shadows, it is surprisingly annoying trying to have people talk exposition off the top while keeping it semi-believable.**

 **-0-**

 **Next Chapter: You will find out what Bruce and Natasha are planning in 'What Killed the Dinosaurs Again?' Interested to see if anyone has any theories as to what it is.**

 **-0-**

 **Please Review!**


	16. What Killed the Dinosaurs Again?

For better or worse, Marvel owns all of this stuff, not me.

-0-

Chapter 16: What Killed the Dinosaurs Again?

-0-

 _Previously: Both the Hulk and Black Widow have become more active in preventing a superhero civil war, including making contact with Spider-Man, and have proposed a radical new joint venture to both SHIELD, the New Avengers, and Stark Industries. Shortly before they revealed this, Steve and Tony resolved to bury their hatchet._

-0-

" _There was an idea, Stark knows this, called the Avengers Initiative. The idea was to bring together a group of remarkable people to see if they could become something more. To see if they could work together when we needed them to, to fight the battles that we never could_."

-Nick Fury, "The Avengers"

-0-

Three Weeks Later

Television broadcast seen worldwide

"We are still waiting here live to see what Tony Stark has planned in here in Africa. As we know, as of three weeks ago, the billionaire suddenly began buying up a massive amount of territory here. He has also been working on road extensions here, and other projects that makes it clear that the man known as Iron Man is preparing for another surprise for the world. And we—pardon? Sorry folks, we're just getting a message now, telling us to look up, and so we see—HOLY MOTHER [Beeeeeeeep]!"

The image being displayed was now pointing nearly straight up, and the cameraman received a fine bonous and approval for paid medical leave to manage his stress.

Across the world people were glued to their televisions, with more turning it on after receiving frantic phone calls from their friends that the scheduled news presentation that had been advertised across the world at significant cost for the last few days was something they had to see to believe.

People gaped, people prayed, and they all tried to make sense of what they were seeing.

 **XXX**

Pym Household

While Scott Lang, a.k.a. Ant-Man did not understand what exactly he was seeing, he could see the blood draining from Dr. Hank Pym's face, genius extraordinaire and the former Ant-Man. Scott barely caught the whispered, anxious words. "You Starks really _do_ want to kill us all."

Hope van Dyne, the Wasp and Scott's girlfriend shot her dad a shocked look, having never heard him use such language, even when the man's deranged ex-protégé held them both at gunpoint and was gloating about how he was going to sell the world's most powerful weapon to HYDRA. "What!? What is it!?" she demanded as she felt her boyfriend's grip on her hand tighten.

"He's being a Stark! Arrogant fool's going to destroy the world while claiming he's trying to save it!"

 **XXX**

Newscast

Bursting down through the heavens was a titanic piece of rock, venting gas and jets of fire that some people recognized as repulsor engines, while other massive pieces of unidentified machinery could be spotted across the surface.

A spherical yellow haze covered the comet, protecting both it and the people flying around as they carried out their duties.

Vision and Iron Man shot again and again to break off chunks of ice and rock to fall separately to the ground to reduce the overall impact.

Falcon and War Machine darted back and forth, securing cables attached to flying vehicles that some distinguished watchers would recognize as being made by SHIELD, which helped slow the descent of the comet to the ground, while the imposing figure of the SHIELD Helicarrier floated in the background with even more restraints attached to it.

Finally, a blaze of red seemed to engulf the comet, which was later revealed during in-depth analysis of the video footage to be the mysterious Scarlet Witch carried within the arms of Vision, using her powers to finish the job.

Gently, the comet landed upon the ground with hardly a tremor, blocking out the skyline and filling everything the camera could see.

"Uhm, we'll get right back to you folks," the anchorman finally got out.

 **XXX**

A few minutes later

"—appears to be kilometers long, and experts tentatively estimate that it weighs billions of tons, made mostly of ice, making it a gigantic comet. We don't yet know what the intentions of Tony Stark are, but we've confirmed that whatever this is involved the combined efforts of him, the New Avengers, and SHIELD. Initial speculation is that this comet was going to impact with the Earth before these heroes intervened is being denied by astronomers who are insistent that they wouldn't have missed such an event. We are still waiting to hea—wait one moment. We've just received word from Tony Stark who's announced that the landing of this comet was a deliberate act, bringing rare resources and water to Africa, and that he and Captain Steve Rogers will be holding a press conference in two hours, once everything has settled down."

The camera panned, showing machines and personnel advancing towards the cooling comet, obviously ready to conduct some strenuous work.

 **XXX**

An hour later

"This just in," a famous news commentator from a different network spoke up on televisions across the globe, "the comet has apparently been renamed the Wolf-Biederman Comet by Tony Stark, apparently enjoying the irony of naming it after a doomsday comet from the 1998 film 'Deep Impact.' We are of course all glad to know that _this_ comet acted differently. And on a related note, the New Avengers have just released a recording they took while they were preparing to lower Wolf-Biederman."

The screen jumped to a professional looking room full of computers and individuals carefully at work. All the people helping had their faces blurred so that they could not be identified, except for the Black Widow, who was reading a checklist out loud. "So no alien microbes?"

"I have double checked every square millimeter," Vision's British accent could be heard, apparently from speakers in the room.

"No imprisoned evil alien warlords?"

"None."

"Including a viral species inhabiting the frozen water?"

"I looked for that too."

"Strange radioactive signature?"

"I checked and recalibrated by sensors for another pass."

"Unidentified metals?"

"Only the expected minerals are present."

"Alien writing?"

"None that I can recognize. Ma'am?"

"Yes, Vision?"

"I am fairly certain that this is just a comet, I'm certain you can put the Genre Savvy List away."

"'Kay, let's do the more serious stuff. No signs of problems with the machines we've attached, and no unexpected gas pockets that we'll have to deal with?"

"Everything is working well within expected parameters, with no unforeseen variables."

"Alright, then I'll let Captain America know that final confirmation has been made."

The screen flashed back to the news commentator, who had a smile on, "Well," he said enthusiastically, "at least we know the New Avengers did their homework beforehand!"

 **XXX**

Two hours after comet landing

Live News Broadcast from Africa

Captain America was onscreen before a crowd of reporters, his cowl drawn back to show his earnest, honest face, with all of the man's natural charisma out in force to captivate the world as he spoke in a clear and measured voice.

"—but this is about more than just proof of what humanity is capable of," Captain America continued, "it is a demonstration of what we shall achieve in the future! That we can all work together and use our abilities to accomplish what's been dismissed as impossible, and continue to create solutions to all the world's problems! And on that note, I'll let Tony Stark take over."

With enthusiastic applause from the audience for both men, the impeccably tailored billionaire industrialist stepped forward, and uncharacteristically held up a hand for everyone to calm down instead of doing anything dramatic. "Thank you all. Now then, Captain America is right, this is proof of what we can accomplish. The only question is: what's next? What are the next boundaries for us to overcome? The answer? Stark Industries will now be working towards using the science and technologies that we have proven here in Africa, to work towards creating space colonies."

He paused for a moment to let everyone digest this.

"This may sound a little like science-fiction to you, but please remember who my buddies are," that got a few chuckles. "In the past few years the Avengers faced challenges that threatened the survival of the human race on several occasions. Our very freedoms and rights were also repeatedly challenged by threats such as Loki or HYDRA, but as a whole we could have survived that, there would have been people who would have still fought back. Extinction is something else, and that is what Ultron threatened us with, and that is what we have to address. Spreading out, and developing the means to protect ourselves from the next alien invasion.

"Also, the critics amongst you have already started talking about how our gift to Africa will exasperate the bigger problem of overpopulation. That bringing water and materials down to Earth will only prolong the inevitable. But now, we have shown you all how we have the means to expand beyond this little ball of dirt, and throughout our solar system. Further details will be pending, no questions for now until you've all had a chance to let it sink in."

Both Stark and Rogers stepped back from the podium, when wild applause broke out in the audience. Captain America responded with a slightly bashful wave, while Iron Man gave a magnanimous bow.

 **XXX**

A week later

Major news program on TVs across the world

The man was a famous TV host, aged in a distinguish manner that seized attention, while the younger woman across from him was famous for her work in advocating greater relief for developing countries, with a special focus on Africa, and even though they had hardly begun, the discussion was already heated.

"—chnology that made it possible for the New Avengers to safely lower the comet down is derived directly from the marvels we've all seen displayed by Iron Man's suits, so of course we will not see technology like that widely available, yet it proves that we can repeat it," the humanitarian concluded.

"But repeat what, Doctor?" the handsome host challenged, "That's what many people around the world are asking, 'what exactly did the Avengers accomplish with this, besides sending a message?' A message that could be forgotten in a few years from now once the shock fades."

"They have brought massive quantities of water, brand new water for the entire world, down for the people living in Africa, which is even now being shipped across the continent for people to drink. The metals within the comet are also being given to the governments to sell to help finance development. Even if they are not used by the Africans themselves, they have just become an ultra-exclusive export to bring in massive income. Who cares about aged wine when you can have water from _outer space_?"

"Yet what about hygiene? That ice can't be healthy!"

"Stark Industries developed a highly-efficient and portable means of sanitizing potable water even back when they were accepting military contracts. Now they are manufacturing and deploying the next generation as fast as they can, and at cost. Every other scientist I have contacted agrees that the water should be perfectly healthy so long as these devices are used, which is indeed happening."

"And what about corruption?" the TV host continued. "Lots of folk are going to be wondering whether or not this new water and wealth will even reach those who need it. That it will be misappropriated."

For some reason, the woman being interviewed seemed to find that funny. Taking a quick yet visible moment to compose herself, she answered. "The truth of the matter is, that we are seeing officials that I _know_ are corrupt suddenly acting out of character, or ending up in hospitals after a series of accidents, letting more honest people take up their jobs help things along."

"Are you implying that someone is covertly taking action against government officials?" the host sternly accused.

"What I'm _saying_ , is that it appears that some Good Samaritan is making it possible for the governments to actually do their jobs. And that we haven't seen the Black Widow in public since that one video release, although there have been alleged sightings of her across the African continent."

 **XXX**

Secret SHIELD base

"Wow! It's actually working!" Agent Daisy Johnson a.k.a. Skye exclaimed.

Looking away from the news report, SHIELD Director Phil Coulson gave his protégé/surrogate daughter a smile, "Yes, it's looking like it'll work out after all."

"Sorry, I'm still confused. Happy, but confused," Agent Lance Hunter, who had along with Agent Melinda May returned from hunting Grant Ward once they had been informed of recent developments. "I get why we're a little warry of Registration, not trusting anyone but ourselves to go around making a list of what everyone can do, and because we know it will backfire if someone goes around insisting that they work for the government and all. I mean, we've all seen how spectacularly that can backfire. And that's just with the old SHIELD. But why are we pushing for this more independent approach again?"

"Because," a smiling Agent Bobbi Morse explained, "we've changed the focus. The Avengers aren't being seen as a vigilante paramilitary unit now, like people have been trying to portray them, but a humanitarian group. We're not seeing people with powers fighting it out in the streets, or dealing with invasions or whatever, they're using their powers to bring water to a place stereotyped for being hot, dry, and poor. Everyone's loving them."

"If the Avengers can keep public opinion behind them, then governments will forced to be at the very least be more circumspect when dealing with people with powers in the near future, and that's where we'll come in. Keep them from getting any headway." Coulson elaborated. "So long as no one Gifted causes a major problem," he admitted.

"Capt's back as a role model for people, and not just as a superhero," engineer whiz Agent Leo Fitz added. "Hopefully this'll redirect any more emerging Gifted into something else. Still risky, but not like before."

"Prod them towards using their abilities for something other than being untrained vigilantes if they don't want to be working for anyone like us," Bobbi added.

Turning more serious now, Daisy their resident Gifted individual threw in, "And helping them see that they really can use their powers for good, that they aren't necessarily monsters by gaining powers. It'll also help dampen public fears of them, and help anyone who wants to, to remain secret if they're still afraid. And it gives Captain America time to find a way to give some accountability to them all."

"And gives us more time to try and clean up all the messes that are left over," Coulson finished. "HYDRA's not dead yet, so we haven't erased all their influence yet. The SSR thought they'd killed them all off before in WWII, and I don't want to make the same mistake. I'm also concerned about the rumors we're getting about that Advanced Threat Containment Unit too; an entire US Black Ops unit apparently made to deal with people with powers being killed off in a single night? Not good. And most importantly, we still haven't figured out who's been trying to play puppet master with us all."

"So what's the next step? We're going to Africa too?" Agent May, Coulson's right-hand, asked, choosing keep her more pessimistic assessments of the outcomes of the situation with Comet to herself.

"No, the agents we've already got in play there can handle it as long as we keep feeding them intel. Our priority right now remains the Hulk issue, and for that we need to go bigger since we still don't have enough answers, so we're going to get more people involved."

"What do you mean?"

'I mean, Fitz, that it's time to get a new advisory council going now that most of the previous one is dead. More to the point, whoever is involved with this, making the Hulk, playing with the Avengers, and everything else we've found, we need to get more people involved with this. So we're getting all the top SHIELD agents together for this on the Helicarrier."

Coulson took another sip of his coffee while letting his subordinates digest this information.

"I thought we were staying in the shadows as much as possible still," Daisy finally protested, while May was giving her boss a disapproving frown, "isn't that a bit risky: bringing everyone together like that?"

"Maybe, but I need to make sure that everyone we can get is onboard, and that we've got every resource possible working on this."

 _And it lets me evaluate the people I've got working for me firsthand, and their reactions to this news,_ the Director silently thought. _Whatever's going on, they must've at one point or another had high access inside of SHIELD, and we've got to plug anymore leaks. Plus I want them to get used to Daisy some more to make sure there isn't any more lingering fears of those who are Gifted. Especially since she's taking on such important jobs as an agent now_.

Finishing his coffee, Coulson headed back to his office to start contacting everyone.

 _And most importantly, we've got to make sure the ideal of the Avengers hasn't been tarnished!_

 **XXX**

Somewhere in Africa

Wanda Maximoff, the Scarlet Witch, took a moment to drink some water to rehydrate herself after some satisfying work. To help reassure people it was safe, she was pointedly drinking Comet water. In front of her were a bunch of burning jeeps and other vehicles, and men who had previously been trying to be intimidating now doing all they could to appear submissive and not draw her attention lest they end up trapped in nightmares like their unfortunate comrades who had not gotten the message sooner.

"Maximoff?" a voice spoke into her ear.

Putting a finger up to her radio, she answered, "Taken care of. Intel was spot on. You dropped me off just where I needed to be to intercept them when they tried to seize the water convoy. All of the bandits have been taken care of, and are waiting to be taken into custody."

There was a light chuckle from the SHIELD agent on the other end. "They call themselves freedom fighters actually."

She just shrugged, "They came at me with guns and were yelling, even tried to use some hostages. And they're still alive, so I'm both satisfied and uninterested in further details right now."

"Roger. Be there in two minutes," and then the man on the other end cut the connection.

 _How did I come to be here_ , Wanda mused a little distractedly. _An impoverished girl from a bleak and ravaged Eastern European country, yet now fighting alongside the enemies she had tried to destroy within Africa, where we're bringing water and hope to everyone._

She had to admit that it was a little awkward for her, but she felt no regrets doing this: helping other people who had been as desolate as her. _W_ _hich also reinforces why I must remain with the Avengers_ , she reminded herself. _All this talk of accountability I've been hearing about, in a sense that is my job now: making sure the rest are acting for benefit of everyone else. I know what it feels like to be one of the little people trampled under the feet of gods, and how good intentions can lead to disasters if there is no-one to check the actions of those with abilities, like Stark's genius. Being here, with them, I can both atone for my crimes and help ensure that nothing like that ever happens again. I swear it, Pietro!_

 **XXX**

Pym Household

Dr. Pym had bunkered up down in his lab, pouring over the technical information that Stark Industries had released regarding lowering the Comet, and used his own genius to fill in the gaps that had been censored, searching for vindication that this new technological demonstration could be used to create a new global threat. Planetary bombardment by smaller yet still guided rocks for instance. "Hmm, at least Stark's smart enough to keep a tight lid on the technology…" Pym muttered as he delved deeper into the data in front of him.

As for Scott and Hope, they were curled up on a couch upstairs with a laptop, reading posted articles and news reports from around the world by people saying how much the resources mined from Wolf-Biederman would revitalize Africa, and how it was proof that humanity had been getting into a rut and not pushing itself as forward as much as it could have. That all of the world's problems _could_ be solved, and they just need to find a way to do it!

And of particular interest: "Looks like lots of people are changing their minds about heroes and people with powers," Scott mused as they finished another passionate argument that supported allowing the New Avengers to retain their independence, citing that no government would have been willing to take the same steps with the Comet.

"It might not be enough," Hope argued, being far more used to the world of politicians, "Rogers and Stark have the popular support now with this huge publicity stunt they've pulled off, but they can't let it slip. If something happens it could backlash, and people will remember the Comet as a subtle threat, not a gift. But so far they seem to be managing it."

 **XXX**

A major African city

SHIELD Specialist Amanda Waller double checked her gear before getting ready to depart. Orders were to do this quickly and cleanly, without any fatalities or crippling injuries. Given the difficulty of pulling this off, her superiors were otherwise generous in her budget and equipment.

Her target was another traitorous local bureaucrat who was trying to suck the life out of his fellow Africans by diverting money from the New Avengers gift into his own pocket. Her job was to either get him to reconsider, out of the generosity of his own heart of course, or make him unable to complete the transaction. Perhaps he would fall down the stairs, multiple times, so that he would be hospitalized; outright eliminations were frowned upon now, especially since it would eventually come to light how SHIELD was manipulating everything, so whatever happened had to be as untainted as possible. Then she would keep an eye on his replacement, though she sincerely hoped the next guy would not do anything stupid too, since it just meant more paperwork for her.

 _We won't get them all, yet enough will get the message. And that is what the comet is too, a symbol. That's what we're all working to create here: new symbols_.

While the intention was to let the public believe that it was the now infamous Black Widow who was responsible for the surprisingly efficiency of African governments across the continent, the truth was the one woman could not be everywhere, which is why SHIELD field agents were involved. If it became necessary, SHIELD would not deny anything, and copious records would be presented to justify their actions.

The amount of global public support existed for this venture would certainly help, especially given all of the different speeches Captain America, another symbol, was orating, telling the world that this was not an example of what the New Avengers were capable of, but humanity as a whole.

 _Seriously, his oratory skills are his_ real _power!_

With one last regretful glance at the bullets she had to leave behind, Waller holstered her ICER and headed out.

 **XXX**

Parker Residence

Peter slowly worked his way through various internet sites, hunting down rumours of what was going on in Africa. The Comet had dominated many classroom discussions, particularly during science and sociology, but something troublesome had come up in the latter class. A classmate had mentioned how the resources were safe because the New Avengers were killing off anyone who tried to seize the materials, and that the Black Widow was removing any government officials who tried to profit from the gift the New Avengers had given to the African people as a whole.

 _Is this what she was hinting about when she came to see me? The expectations people would have for me if I joined up with them? Or are they actually handling this in a more merciful fashion?_ All Peter knew for sure, was that he needed to understand what being Spider-Man meant more than ever before.

Still, his socials teacher was still very excited by this, trying to draw out what his students thought of it all. The man had been particularly excited about how super-powered people were not "wasting their abilities" anymore on "mindless violence," predicting that now most of them would turn to using the talents to improve the world.

The classroom of teenagers had been understandably skeptical, but the event had generated considerable discussion, and they were all spending more time on it in class than doing their actual course work.

"Why not the Middle East?" one girl had asked earlier that day.

"Probably because things are so tense there. They probably figured that if anything went wrong in Africa, it wouldn't escalate as badly," another classmate theorized.

"And to kiss-up for what happened there before," another cynically called out.

As for Peter, he stayed quiet and unseen, but memorized every word and theory to help him understand what his place in the coming world would be.

 **XXX**

Another news broadcast

"Yet another heartening press conference from Stark Industries, as CEO Pepper Potts announces that while continuing promote green energy and now working towards the space industry, they have also developed advanced new prosthetics that will be made readily available to the global community. In fact, she has announced that these new artificial limbs are so advanced and realistic that they may be mistaken for science-fiction!"

"Indeed," the other attractive news anchor brightly added, "it appears the only delay in releasing them to the general public is that they want to let the scientific community have the chance to examine them beforehand and verify how safe and secure they are. Stark Industries is also petitioning Disneyland for the right to dub these new prosthetics the 'Luke Skywalker Limbs!'"

The first newscaster gave a polite chuckle at that. "Moreover, Stark Industries has revealed another aspect of their future plans that is sure to shake up the world. CEO Pepper Potts has declared that when Stark Industries begins to make new space vessels, those craft will not be under any of the restrictions faced down on earth. Specifically they will be able to power them with Arc Reactor technology. This, she states, will prove that they are safe, reliable, and environmental, despite protests by numerous scientists. She even went so far as to accuse the present opposition as being funded by those heavily invested in the oil industry."

 **XXX**

Stark Industries

Pepper was a picture of composure as she worked her way through all the newest reports before her. The company had taken a hit by losing JARVIS, and FRIDAY was still not up to par. Moreover, the CEO's workload had doubled with the announcement of the newest radical shift in policy that she and Tony were taking everyone.

Her jobs for the next hour included preparing for her newest meeting with NASA, selecting a means to further reassure employees that their jobs were not endangered, quickly look through the summaries from lobbying firms she had hired to help support both the New Avengers and the African Campaign, tell marketing to start finding a more glamorous way to explain that the new space industry would require selling how bodily wastes were recycled to produce crops, and also…

 **XXX**

Secret SHIELD Base

"—and isn't Sentient World Observation and Response Department a bit wordy," Air Force General Talbot asked SHIELD Director Coulson from the screen.

"That's why we're calling it SWORD for short," Coulson answered, enjoying how Talbot rolled his eyes at that, just like the Director's own subordinates had. "Back when SHIELD was first formed, the original SWORD was formed with the suspicion that there might be alien life out there. It was later absorbed into SHIELD due to lack of results on their end and how it was the latter that kept finding clues anyways."

"And you're thinking of reactivating this organization, separate from SHIELD," Talbot asked, naked suspicion in his eyes.

"Yes, especially given the people already committed to it. Tony Stark will end up being a key part of it, and he's actively worried that the next alien invasion won't involve a wormhole, and Stark Industries is already heavily involved with starting a new space program. And we'd like you to be heavily involved with this too," Coulson finished, knowing that this rise in status would appeal to the man's patriotism and ambition. It was thanks to the fact that the former outweighed the latter, and that he _was_ still competent, that SHIELD was willing to support him. "I just ask that you leave my name out of it," he added.

Talbot paused in obvious thought before nodding. "You'll be sending SHIELD whatever you already have on aliens?"

"Most of it," Coulson admitted. "Some of it we're still keeping compartmentalized as much as possible. But everything we know about what's going on beyond our atmosphere will be sent to you."

The general was obviously unhappy with this, but was well aware that the spy-master could have just lied by saying everything would be sent over, and that confessing there were still some secrets left was a concession in itself. "So what is this going to look like?" he asked instead, "The International Space Station with guns bristling around it?"

"No, a single station can't cover everything," Coulson corrected, "SWORD will have to cover the whole planet, and be set to handle everything from helping colonization of the moon and Mars like Stark's saying, to making sure no kinetic missiles are fired at us from orbit." Seeing Talbot's confusion, "I'd brush up on my science fiction literature if I were you. Star Trek episodes aren't enough anymore, unfortunately."

Talbot just grunted in annoyance at this, planning to delegate to someone to winnow down his search. "I don't suppose you have someone you'd like in charge?"

Deciding that it was honest curiosity without any other implications, Coulson happily answered. "Dr. Erik Selvig. He might be more of a scientist than an administrator, but I feel he's got the necessary balanced perspective for this. He's been personally involved with both alien invasions, so he's well aware of the threats we face. At the same time, he's managed to forge a close friendship with Thor. At the very least you'll want someone like that in an important position."

Translation: he was unlikely at first glance to become either an anti-alien extremist, or naively accepting whatever extraterrestrial contact was made. Moreover, the Asgardian connection would be reassuring to humanity as a whole, and their only foreign ally.  
SHIELD was also hoping that the man had learned from Tony Stark's mistakes, and would take steps to keep a leash on the man and his interstellar projects. As it was, the billionaire inventor had been forced to agree that he would not accept directorship of SWORD, and that any and all projects he did would be carefully monitored. Despite this, the man was probably the best suited to take the lead in defending the solar system itself. Something about building a space-ship that he would control as if he was in a regular suit of armour that he was planning to call the Mark 47.

After all, Stark's technology already appeared to match or surpass a lot of what the Chitauri had mobilized against Earth.

"I'll look into it," the general promised, and then paused, "You know, I just took my family to see 'The Martian' the day before this all went down, and now Stark's talking about colonizing the planet."

Coulson cracked a grin at that, "I'm thinking of making it mandatory viewing for all agents," he joked, 'but the truth is that it does seem possible, especially since water's been discovered there, and after their little demonstration."

With a contemplative nod the Talbot hung up.

 **XXX**

Skies above Africa

Vision flew towards his next location, where Captain America and Black Widow suspected another insurgent attack would occur. As he flew, he remembered a certain conversation.

 **XXX**

[Flashback]

 _He stood before his creator, the one who was so unique and yet so full of pain that he had to be stopped, no matter the cost. Despite this, Vision felt compelled to try and save this individual one last time, to give him a choice. And so he said, "Humans are odd. They think order and chaos are somehow opposites and try to control what won't be. But there is grace in their failings. I think you missed that."_

 _Contemptuously, Ultron merely looked away and snapped, "They're doomed!"_

 _"Yes," Vision agreed sadly, grieving for the being he would now shortly have to kill in cold blood, and the eventual death of mankind, and after a contemplative pause he looked Ultron in the eyes once more, and mused aloud, "But a thing isn't beautiful because it lasts. It is a privilege to be among them."_

 **XXX**

Present

With those memories in mind, Vision absently flew within a cloud to enjoy the sensation the experience gave him.

 _And recent events have made it an even greater privilege_ , Vision concluded with pride, _they have risen even higher than I expected, and this might be what brings them together to rise beyond even what their imaginations hold right now. The greatest tragedy is that Ultron was still right, and there is even less time now_.

 **XXX**

Unknown Location

The sound of breaking glass could be heard as something impacted against a distant wall. "What are those misguided fools thinking!?" an unseen voice snarled.

"That they've found some way to start improving a lot of the world's problems, and gained enough public gratitude that none of the politicians will lay a finger on them?" another voice answered, failing to sound casual given the amount of stress that bled through his words.

A stream of obscenities was the answer, along with the sound of flesh repeatedly hitting a solid object. The second, more controlled, individual waited for his companion to calm down a bit before asking, "Do we let it go through?"

"…No, best leave it alone for now. Even just the water they've brought down will make the future easier, and at least laying the theoretical groundwork for a serious space program should be beneficial as well." A pause. "In fact we should try and accelerate it. The only trick will be making sure there aren't any inconvenient orbital weapons able to fire down on the Earth. SHIELD took care of all the Cold War ones, but we need to help them keep an eye out for any more until they are necessary. But what we _really_ have to focus on is how this will push the Civil War back, and we need it, _humanity_ needs it to happen. The consequences of it not happening…"

"Oh, I agree. It's unfortunate, but still necessary."

"We'll have to accelerate the timetable. Fast. Can we use those HYDRA cells we've been prepping?"

"Absolutely," was the immediate reply, giving the impression the calmer conspirator had been anticipating this line of thinking why waiting for the other person to pull himself together. "And it should be big enough to pull more than enough attention away from what's happening in Africa and what Stark is doing. After all this, we can count on those extremists to do something dramatic."

 **XXX**

 **Author Notes:**

 **Credit where credit is due, I first started thinking about this idea thanks to 'Origin Story' by Worldmaker. I have not read the story, yet I did find this quote on TvTropes from during the Civil War:**

 **Alex (as Superwoman):** "You people call yourselves heroes, but all you're doing is running around fighting each other! When was the last time you fed the hungry? When was the last time you helped irrigate a desert? When was the last time you were there for someone who just needed a friend? That's what being a hero is all about. You're all like children, throwing temper tantrums."

 **I already had this all planned out beforehand, yet after I watched the movie 'Deep Impact' I just went and sat down and really got the rest of the important stuff down, which I find funny and ironic. Oh, and regarding any science issues with landing a comet like that, I just point to Jane Foster, Erik Selvig, Bruce Banner, and Tony Stark and hand-wave by saying they are geniuses. Also, the time limit they were worried about in the last chapter was related to the optimum position of the comet to capture it.**

 **I wrote bits of this chapter before seeing Agents of SHIELD season 2. And as you can guess, after watching that season I had to basically rewrite everything I had for the SHIELD section, and then tripled the length as I got new and wonderful content. On that note, for SHIELD, things are definitely going a bit AU now, especially given the revelations about the Hulk and the Avengers they are concerned about. Not to mention busy helping with the comet. Also, as noted, the group the US government made in canon has been mysteriously killed off, lowering their concerns. Hunter's remark about how SHIELD has handed the gifted is not just a reference to the Inhumans, but also how even Coulson was unsure if Donnie Gil's, a.k.a. Blizzard's, training with his powers despite being emotionally unstable was from SHIELD itself or HYDRA moles.**

 **Oh, and one last thing: to give you a hint to put the implications of that last section into perspective…we are not even halfway through what I have planned for this story**

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 **Recommended fics:**

 **'Silas Marner,' by angelaumbrello**

 **'The Snow Queen and the Ice Demon,' by Lizardbeth_J**

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 **Next chapter: 'SHIELD, HYDRA, and the Appendix'**

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 **Please Review!**


	17. SHIELD, HYDRA, and the Appendix

For better or worse, Marvel owns all of this stuff, not me.

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Chapter 17: SHIELD, HYDRA, and the Appendix

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 _Previously: Bruce and Natasha Romanoff-Banner unveiled their plan to land a comet from space, providing valuable resources to the world and to act as a symbol of what independent heroes could achieve, and humanity as a whole. Unbeknownst to the secretly married couple, Nick Fury and his agents continued to uncover disturbing facts about the Avengers Initiative, and the Hulk in particular, with Steve Rogers now also being informed._

 _Also, Bucky Barnes had managed to shake off his Winter Soldier programming on his own. Yet before he could approach the Avengers he encountered a HYDRA cell and was forced to improvise, pretending to still be a loyal human weapon. He stayed undercover once he got an idea of what secretive project the neo-fascists were working on._

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 _'The principle S.H.I.E.L.D. was founded upon was pure... Protection. One word. Sometimes to protect one man against himself, other times to protect the planet against an alien invasion from another universe... but the belief that drives us all is the same, whether it's one man, or all mankind.'  
'That they're worth saving.'_

―Nick Fury and Phil Coulson, "Agents of SHIELD."

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Avengers Facility

Steve paused as he entered the practice range to see Natasha showing Bruce how to fire a gun properly. "What's this?" he asked with blatant curiosity.

"I thought it would be a good idea if Bruce could participate in fire fights," Natasha answered breezily.

"No, really," Steve deadpanned.

"She's, uh, actually serious," Bruce spoke up.

"Keep concentrating Bruce," Natasha scolded him, before turning back to Captain America. "As long as it's with those ICER rounds that just knocks whoever he's shooting unconscious, he's happy, but I want him able to use normal bullets too. The idea is that he be able to fight better without calling the Other Guy. For more delicate stuff, y'know?"

"You actually want Bruce in a firefight!?" Steve finally demanded incredulously.

"He'll only go green if he gets hit or someone he's with gets hurt. He's got the self-control down so that his heartrate hardly skips unless he wants it to," she explained. "He can't die and as long as he knows he isn't killing anyone, he should be able to stay calm enough. Besides, what if he has to save someone and it's too dangerous to whomever he's trying to save to let the Other Guy out? Like an enclosed space?" she argued.

Steve just stared for a moment, and conceded that her arguments held some truth, even if he wanted to think about it some more before giving it a trial run. It was also very telling about how their relationship had progressed if Natasha dismissed the emergence of the Hulk as Bruce 'only going green,' without any other concern from either party. "Alright, let's see how it goes. Just let me know before you want to do more field work, alright Doc?" he said lightly.

"Gotcha!" Bruce answered, taking another series of shots that Steve had to admit were half-decent for a civilian who was just starting out.

"Anyways," their leader continued, "I need you both for a mission briefing. Now."

"What's up," Natasha asked as she started grabbing stuff to put away, noting the serious tone her friend had.

"We just got a call. From Bucky."

Natasha locked eyes with Steve in shock, and Bruce nearly spun around to look too, before catching himself as he remembered he was holding a gun. "Okay," she answered, "we'll be right there. I think Vision is teaching Wanda in that improvised classroom again."

"Pardon?" Bruce asked.

"Wanda's formal education is a bit incomplete," Steve explained, "so Vision offered to help teach her some."

"Hmm, I wonder what he was 'teaching' her," Natasha insinuated with a knowing smirk.

Choosing not to get involved at all, the Sentinel of Liberty just turned and walked away, then stopped to look back, "Where's Laura?"

"Dr. Selvig's taking care of her. He wanted a little more time with her before going to see the government about maybe being part of SWORD."

 **XXX**

The Avengers were quickly assembled in the briefing room, all eager to hear what Captain America had to reveal about his long-lost friend.

"But I thought you said you were hunting for clues of him still?" Wanda whispered across the table towards Sam.

"I was," he said, "but it looks like he's contacting us now."

"From a HYDRA facility at that," Steve broke in, making everyone go silent. Steve took a deep breath before continuing, "Hill's not here at the moment, but she sent me what SHIELD has to help," he informed them. "Bucky's message was addressed to me and had a bunch of personal information in it. Also, his eyes weren't as…empty anymore. He then told me that he was with a HYDRA cell—"

"Sorry, but it was a direct communication?" Natasha interrupted.

"No, a recording left at a SHIELD dead drop. He says he got picked up by a HYDRA cell but managed to pretend he was still brainwashed. He stayed with them because they're working on something big that has him concerned, and they've suddenly started accelerating whatever it is, and he wants us to come get him and shut the cell down now. He was also able to confirm though, that this cell is operating independently of the rest of HYDRA and its present leadership."

"I thought HYDRA's leadership was killed off?" Wanda asked in confusion.

"Apparently this cell went quiet early on, some sort of conflict between the leaders, and has been lying low this entire time from both HYDRA and everyone else, except for two other cells they have contact with. Bucky suspects the leaders of these cells only used to be mid-level managers, and they hope by pulling this off they can supplant whoever has taken over the rest of surviving organization. They were only allowed to remain independent by Strucker because he decided that whatever they were working on was promising enough for him to overlook this. Unfortunately, in all the intel we've gathered we've only found has vague hints about this cell, so we don't really know what they're working on. Thankfully, SHIELD thinks that this means that the rest of HYDRA doesn't know about them either now that Strucker is dead. So we go in, with SHIELD providing back-up, and take them out."

Steve then took a deep breath. "Another reason why we've got to do this," and it was clear to everyone that he despised this line of thinking, "is that even if this is actually a trap, we still have to bring Bucky in. He's one of a very small handful of candidates to successfully take a variant of the Super Soldier Serum without any repercussions. Zola was the one to originally develop what was given to Bucky, yet he was never able to successfully recreate it for anyone else, even during the seventy years after the War. And apparently neither HYDRA nor SHIELD could figure out how it was stabilized for the third successful candidate, a man who Hill just refers to here as Deathlok. Lots of people, besides HYDRA, will be after Bucky just to dissect him to try and figure out he ticks. So we've got to move fast, understand?"

"Got it!"

"You know it!"

"Let's go!"

"Can we see the original video?" Sam broke in, obviously a little skeptical, with Natasha nodding in agreement. Steve just silently tapped his personal tablet, sending a copy of the recording to them both. Nodding when he saw he had received it, Sam broke into a smile, "Hopefully we'll get another Avenger out of this!"

As everyone filed out for their last preparations for the mission, Steve gestured to a particular couple, "Oh, and Bruce? Natasha?" Both individuals turned to look at Steve who had a serious look on his face, "After this, we need to talk about something."

With a cautious nod Bruce carried on, though he did throw another look back at Steve. Natasha just impassively turned her attention back to the information on her tablet, automatically absorbing the information even as her mind raced as she wondered what Steve was so concerned about.

 **XXX**

SHIELD Helicarrier

Nick Fury paused to look around at the men and women assembled within the conference room as he walked in. There had never been such an assemblage of the most important members of the modern SHIELD before, deeming it both too dangerous and too costly to take them away from their posts and put them all together in the same room; team leaders, decorated field agents, trusted analysists, brilliant scientists, etcetera. Assembling them all had taxed most of their remaining transports as it was, since many of them had to return to active duty right after this briefing.

Everyone quieted down with the intimidating arrival of their former boss, while waiting for their new one finally joined them from, having arrived late. No one was complaining though since his message indicated it was because of a recent breakthrough, and he had instructed everyone to be waiting for him in the briefing room. For Fury, making sure he was sitting here with everyone else, was the spymaster's way to emphasize to everyone that he was the subordinate now, and that his successor had his full support.

When their leader finally arrived, Fury was sitting a little off from the middle of the long conference table, facing the door so that he could see him enter and greet him first.

"Director," Fury pointedly said to help further ratify the man's authority and leadership of SHIELD.

"Fury," Director Phil Coulson said with a calm, serene smile that somehow projected authority and relaxation that put those around him at ease. With this confidence projecting at full force, the immaculately dressed man looked around to assess the men and women before him.

This was not the SHIELD of a few years ago, with seemingly limitless influence, wealth, firepower, and miraculous technology. They were not the members of a top-secret intelligence organization that denied its existence even as their headquarters were location in the gigantic and publicly visible Triskelion. They could no longer casually decide the very development of nations.

The revelation of HYDRA had been an eye opener, and the organization that had emerged from the ashes was a much leaner one, made up only of the true believers for SHIELD.

This 'downsizing' was not just from pruning the Nazi cult members, but in the light of the international outrage of how the world's most advanced intelligence agency had nearly been used to conquer the world, far too many loyal agents were now in the custody of various governments, either because they genuinely wanted to turn themselves in to the authorities to atone, or because they had been arrested. A disturbing number had fled to the private sector, selling their skills and secrets to the highest bidder. Others had been too shaken by the betrayal of people they had thought of as friends and comrades, and unsure of who to trust now, had just faded into the background and retired.

The ongoing war with HYDRA had of course by far generated the most fatalities, decimating the ranks of the loyalists ever since the sleeper agents had first been activated and started shooting their former colleagues in the backs. Possessing the initiative, and being in positions to do the greatest harm, their strikes had been devastating. The 'fortunate' victims during this outbreak had been those who died on the spot during the outbreak, since the traitors possessed ever innovative ways to make examples of their enemies, and had even used mind control to flip the loyalties of formerly decent people into ruthless killers.

The survivors now were not just the most skilled and gifted, or lucky, agents, but also those who were still willing to give their all in order to uphold the vows they had sworn when they had first joined SHIELD. Each and every one of them had regrouped, collected themselves, and had decisively struck back. They had accepted being branded international fugitives, terrorists, and being forced to divorce themselves entirely from their previous lives. The operatives continued to fight despite risking death or worse every day of their lives, struggling onwards undaunted. They all knew it was worth it.

To be the shield.

To protect the world against the much weirder world.

Living in the shadows to save people even when they don't know it, don't want it.

And for this, Phil Coulson was the best man to both lead them and rebuild the organization from the bottom up. A man who believed in second chances, working towards making the world better a place, that standing up for what was right _did_ matter, and _would_ make a difference.

That was not to say that he did not have a ruthless side, or that he did not have ruthless people working directly with him on a daily basis (because he did, and people like Agent May were just plain scary), or did not make a habit of holding secrets close to his chest. Yet unlike Nick Fury, everyone in SHIELD was now willing to concede that 'ruthless' and 'secretive' were not defining characteristics of Coulson. Indeed, the fact was that the reason Fury was so effective at outmaneuvering the threats in the world was because for better or worse he was able to think like the opposition well enough to get into their shoes. For the most part it was for the better, until Fury realized that he was the one who had inspired the Director Pierce, the leader of both SHIELD and one of the main leaders of HYDRA, into becoming a man willing to kill millions of people in order to rule over the rest, and still believe it was for the greater good.

 **XXX**

[Flashback]

 _Nick Fury glowered at Alexander Pierce as he confronted his ex-boss while Rogers and Wilson battled to take down the helicarriers._

 _"Did you get my flowers?" his supposed friend asked, acting unsurprised to see him still alive. Fury just continued giving a cold look in response until Pierce tried again, "I'm glad you're here, Nick."_

 _"Really? 'Cause I thought you had me killed."_

 _"You know how the game works."_

 _"So why make me head of SHIELD?" Fury asked, hoping to finally have an answer for the question he had struggled with ever since he had learned the truth of what he was up against: 'why?'_

 _"Cause you're the best and the most ruthless person I ever met," Pierce answered sincerely._

 _"I did what I did to protect people," Fury growled out in defense of his past actions._

 _"Our enemies are your enemies, Nick. Disorder, war. It's just a matter of time before a dirty bomb goes off in Moscow, or an EMP fries Chicago. Diplomacy? Holding action, a band-aid. And you know where I learned that; Bogota." Pierce paused at this to let Fury digest this revelation, seeing how affected Fury was by the reference to the incident where they had first met, when Fury had saved the man's daughter with an unsanctioned mission._

 _Pierce continued his explanation, trying to make his friend understand why this was all regrettable, but still essential for peace. "You didn't ask, you just did what had to be done. I can bring order to the lives of seven billion people by sacrificing twenty million. It's the next step, Nick, if you have the courage to take it."_

 _And while Fury managed to maintain his one-eyed glare, inside he was choking down the horror he felt towards the monster he had inspired, a monster who was posed to undo every good deed Fury had ever committed, and make every 'necessary sacrifice' meaningless._

 **XXX**

Present

The fact that Project: Insight had originally Fury's idea did not help matters as far as the rest of SHIELD was concerned; Fury was simply no longer someone that the majority could trust. They could respect him, and fear him, but they would no longer follow his rule.

After Coulson's successes in eliminating nearly all of HYDRA's leadership, and uniting SHIELD under his banner, his subordinates were willing to admit that they respected the man for his competency and decency. The fact that he had consistently outmaneuvered all of his adversaries was also not something that could be ignored by anyone.

Most importantly, after suffering through so much betrayal and horrors over the last year, everyone had to appreciate the values that he worked to nurture in his agents: loyalty, compassion, and heart, and the man had already demonstrated how these were SHIELD's true strength.

Unfortunately, the organization was still recovering, subsisting on what bases Nick Fury had hidden away after the alien of New York City, what installations had held out against HYDRA forces and had not subsequently been seized by local governments, or what they could steal from HYDRA. Fortunately, their finances were still very secure.

Eyes glancing at who had accompanied Coulson, Agent Weaver, the former director of the SHIELD Academy of Science and Technology spoke up, "Where is Jemma? I thought she'd recovered from her ordeal?"

"Busy doing another autopsy of a corpse we'd dug up, to confirm the cause of death," Coulson answered. "We've been doing that a lot lately."

Nodding in understanding, the woman settled down, this led another senior to speak up. "How's the new hand?" Felix Blake asked, finally fully recovered from his injuries inflicted by Agent Mike Peterson when he had been coerced into being Deathlok, as well as complications from when HYDRA had tried to kill him in the hospital.

Smiling, Coulson held up what appeared to be a perfectly normal flesh and blood hand despite his original one being chopped off, "Pretty good! Dr. Banner's design is just incredible!" He flexed and twirled his fingers around as he continued, "I don't even have phantom pains with this model! Sometimes I even manage to forget it's mechanical." After his audience finished glancing in curiosity at the new appendage, and speculating to themselves as to what the spy-master might have been added on, they all finally settled down.

The Director waited a moment to make sure he had everyone's attention before starting.

"Alright, first, I'd like to congratulate you all on your work in Africa. We've all made amazing progress there, and we're already seeing signs of how life is improving for the populace on a wide and significant scale. Good job," and then Coulson gave a quick yet clearly sincere round of applause to everyone, which made even a few hardened agents shift with satisfaction.

"Now then, to business," Coulson continued with a light smile that instantly returned everyone to the matter over which they had been summoned, "we are here to discuss the activities of a hitherto unknown organization that has had a disturbing amount of influence in directing global events, specifically regarding the Avengers. As you know, we only became aware of this thanks to an investigation by Tony Stark in which he discovered that the Hulk was not the result of a lab accident, but deliberate sabotage. Subsequent investigations by SHIELD have confirmed this."

"Sorry," an agent spoke up before turning to ex-Deputy Director Maria Hill, "are we sure that he's still unaware of this?"

Frowning at the disrespect that would not have been present in the old SHIELD, the leader of the SHIELD division responsible for working directly with the Avengers coldly answered "We haven't had any rampages yet, so no."

"Your concern is understandable," Coulson diplomatically assured them. "That is why SHIELD's put almost all of its available resources into this. Yet what you are now learning is that the initial task force dedicated to this subject was deemed inadequate when Nick Fury," the director gestured to his predecessor, "found a connection between various dead politicians who would have opposed the creation of the Avengers, or would have likely tried to propose policies that would impose greater and unacceptable control over them. Most individuals associated with the science behind the sabotage that created Hulk are also dead. The ability to identify, locate, and then kill all of these people off, over a period of several years, without being detected, is troubling in itself without even considering how all the victims were related to each other."

All of the agents in the room did not react, for they had already been briefed on this, yet accepted that Coulson wanted to emphasize the seriousness of the situation.

"Do we have a name for these people?" someone innocently asked. "Something other than 'the mysterious party?'"

"We're calling them the Appendix," Agent Daisy, Gifted powerhouse, Inhuman, analyst, and hacker extraordinaire answered, putting on a serious façade even as her friends and adopted family did their best to not roll their eyes.

"Indeed," Coulson confirmed with a smile, "and they will be cut out like one." Frankly, it had been that analogy that made him accept that name.

"We've concluded," continued a now visibly not smiling Coulson, "that the Appendix," the assembled agents had mixed feelings on how readily their boss accepted that name, "was working behind the scenes, even before the Avengers Initiative was first proposed in SHIELD, to help make it a reality. After that program was deemed a success with the Battle of New York, this unknown party then turned their attention towards maintaining a fine balance regarding government control of them."

"Your pardon, sir, but what do you mean they, uhm, the Appendix worked to make the program possible?" one senior analyst spoke up, "were they involved in more than just the Hulk?"

"Oh yes," Coulson continued grimly. "We've confirmed that the reason Captain America, Black Widow, and Nick Fury were able to shut down Project: Insight and reveal HYDRA was because someone led Fury in the right direction!"

A hush fell over the room as they contemplated the legendary spy master, one even his detractors respected for his ability, being played like a junior operative.

"Also, do you all remember how we found Captain America?"

Dread on their faces, most of the men and women nodded.

"The program that carried it would was initiated by Director Fury himself," said Coulson, nodding at the man in question, who nodded back to acknowledge the respect. "I myself was in charge of the program," he paused to let everyone let off a little humour, their new director's…reverence for Steve Rogers being rather infamous, "and I saw no real irregularities, although I was a little surprised by the amount of funding we received." A few agents nodded, accepting the man's legendary judgment while he continued.

"Several other projects that we now know to have originated with HYDRA had suffered sudden setbacks that justified diverting their resources towards finding what we believed would be the body of the greatest hero, and the secrets he held. We are now suspecting sabotage given some of the reports from then. On a hunch, my experts," at this their boss indicated Daisy and genius engineer Fitz, "went other aspects of the search that seemed unrelated, and they discovered several technological advances that seemed to come out of nowhere that would have made our efforts easier. Surprisingly, we found no indications of who had actually developed these advances."

"You said, 'would have made our efforts easier,'" Fury prompted. He was already aware of this part of the briefing at least, but he wanted to be sure the other SHIELD agents kept on track.

"I'll spare you the details of our search," the new director said with a small smile, even as he pulled out a few thick folders forward, as an invitation to be read at a later time "but because of the difficulties we faced in searching for Captain America, none of this theoretical assistance made a difference. The only way it could have gone faster was if someone pointed us right at him."

"What about the other Avengers?" another agent spoke up.

"Nothing conclusive, outside of how agents who I personally feel might have been more resistant, perhaps violently, to the Initiative or those connected to them, both before and after it was set into motion, were reassigned or killed in action. Some of them could have hypothetically been assigned to my team during our second encounter with Asgardians." The agents recognized the reference to when the Asgardian criminal the Enchantress had escaped to Earth. "And that's for both loyal agents and those we later learned were HYDRA."

"We're trying hard to find evidence that disproves that there is some über conspiracy behind the Avengers that we've all missed up to now," Fury spoke up firmly, "but we're getting concerned. Especially since it seems like the Appendix now _wants_ a conflict between the superheroes."

Every member of SHIELD who was present shot Coulson a look for confirmation, and all their boss could do was give them a grim nod.

"Well %^&*(!"

"Yeah, that's our opinion too," Daisy replied with a strained smile, "and we still don't know _why_."

 **XXX**

Two hours later

Avenger's Quinjet

"Alright everyone," Captain America called out, "SHIELD's people are here already, but their rides got recalled for something else, but we should have enough to handle what's here. Everybody knows what to do?"

Shouts and nods of enthusiasm answered them, and baby Laura clapped her hands in agreement.

"Uh, Doc? You sure that's a good idea to bring her?" War Machine asked.

Bruce just shrugged, "Everyone else to babysit her is busy or elsewhere. I'll just keep well back with the cloak on."

"Alright, if you're sure."

 **XXX**

At its height, HYDRA had enjoyed all the powers and privileges of SHIELD, yet with the added euphoria of being the puppet masters.

The ones who were directing the world from the shadows.

Drunk upon the feelings that came with the knowledge you were controlling the lives of the unwitting masses.

And then the Avengers happened.

And then SHIELD had struck back with a vengeance against their betrayers.

SHIELD lopping off Heads from the shadows, while the Avengers did the same in the light of day.

Now the remnants were struggling to survive, hunted as Nazis extremists by most of the world.

The survivors despised that label, 'Nazis,' regarding it as both inaccurate and guaranteed to turn public opinion against them. The Red Skull had been a visionary, and Nazism had only been a tool to help save humanity from itself.

Even those nations or individuals who might have embraced what HYDRA had to offer had to be circumspect lest the wrath of the so-called 'heroes,' SHIELD, or any other intelligence agency fell upon them.

Their gifts to mankind overlooked. Dismissed.

The stink of hypocrisy from a world that had increasingly come to recognize how much they naturally embraced strength and security, while mouthing empty words about freedom and equality.

Dismissing salvation because of its association with a historical relic.

HYDRA was still powerful, yet they could not mobilize anything that could match the Avengers in the field.

Until now.

Their mysterious benefactor had given the opportunity to fight back against the Avengers on equal terms, and that was even before they had rediscovered the Winter Soldier.

A way to tear down the gods.

A way to win the war for good.

 **XXX**

Hidden headquarters of a hidden HYDRA cell

The entranceway to the HYDRA base was heavily reinforced, with security cameras, wired remote control turrets, and heavily armed guards.

Forewarned, the Avengers chose to just demolish an entire wall, and a few more after that, to break out into several passageways as they stormed the building. Supported by SHIELD, the Avengers efficiently and enthusiastically cut through the defenders.

"Schematics Sergeant Barnes sent us appear to be accurate," War Machine reported as he scanned what he could of the installation.

"Indeed," Vision confirmed.

"Okay then, you know your objectives, spread out and take them down!" Captain America ordered.

 **XXX**

War Machine ripped the metal door down and strode inside, shoulder turret swiveling and arms raised up towards the HYDRA agents pointing rifles at him.

Everyone stood still.

And then all the terrorists threw down their weapons and held their arms up to surrender.

"Yeah, that's right," Rhodey gloated while SHIELD agents filed into the room to take custody of the prisoners, and War Machine moved on to the next room.

 **XXX**

"You know, something just occurred to me," Scarlet Witch casually noted to Vision, who was standing beside her while she made a barrier to block the bullets being fired at her and the SHIELD agents accompanying them.

"What is that?" Vision's asked in his cultured voice as he threw another battered HYDRA into a wall.

"I never really gave HYDRA my letter of resignation," she said with a smile.

 **XXX**

"What?" Falcon called out, "Isn't someone going to say the whole 'Cut off one head,' line? C'mon people, you're killing me here."

"Two more shall take its place," one HYDRA agent defiantly obliged, and was then silenced when Black Widow finished stalking forward and tore into him and his comrades, having pinpointed him thanks to the noise the patsy was making.

 **XXX**

Captain America fought the urge to ask about Bucky after everyone gave another check-in to report that things were going well. _They'd have told me if they'd seen any sign_.

And with that, he returned to the task at hand and let loose with his trusty shield, ricocheting it down the hallway to knock out everyone there.

 **XXX**

The HYDRA cell leader, Ophelia Sarkissian, ran into the room the Asset was in. They had not had time to fix his damaged arm, the man they had been planning to abduct would not have been sufficiently vulnerable for a few more days, but he should still be capable of buying time for the leadership of the true HYDRA to escape. "Asset! The Avengers are here! Kill them!"

Bucky's answer was a throat chop, just hard enough to only leave her gasping for breath, while his sole hand went into her mouth like lightning to yank out her tooth that housed her suicide capsule. Holding a pair of handcuffs in his mouth, he then dragged the dazed woman casually with his single functional arm, and bound her to a convenient pipe.

"That's Sergeant Barnes to you, terrorist," he finally said with satisfaction, enjoying the dawning comprehension and horror on her face.

 **XXX**

The Scarlet Witch and Vision were just rounding a corner when the armed defenders finished falling to the ground, with a one-armed man already tracking towards them with a sub-machine gun.

Pausing, Bucky slowly and reassuringly raised his weapon so that it was pointed at the ceiling. "You're with Steve, right?"

"That is correct," Vision answered, while his companion put a call in to Captain America, her eyes never leaving the figure before her.

Trying to ease the mood, Bucky tried a small joke, "So we've got a one-armed super-soldier, an android, and a witch. What next?"

The slightest sound made the ex-assassin turn and kick a HYDRA thug in the head. After cocking his own for a better examination of the downed man, Bucky turned back to the wary heroes and SHIELD agents. "Still alive, but I admit I've got some anger issues to work out on them. But I'm trying to keep it cool."

And with that he flipped the gun he was still holding over his head so that he was holding it by the barrel, and eased his arm down so that he was offering the weapon to the synthoid. "Here. To help put everyone at ease."

In answer, the Scarlet Witch suddenly shot her hands out in front of her in a flash of red, and Bucky glanced over his shoulder at the sight of another HYDRA member he had shot slam into a wall, having also been trying to get up. "Sorry about that," he said with a little mock embarrassment. "I was rushing it a bit on trying to take them all down."

 **XXX**

An hour later

"That's it, Captain Rogers," a SHIELD agent reported, "our last sweeps confirmed we've accounted for everyone, and there are no lingering traps."

"Good," Steve answered, his eyes bright with sincerity. "Thank you all for your help; we couldn't have done such a good job without you."

"Just doing my job," was the stoic reply, knowing his men were covertly recording this so that they could celebrate later, and show off to their fellow agents how _they_ were the ones getting praised by _the_ Captain America.

"Steve?" Wanda called out, and the man in question turned to see Bucky before him, looking a little nervous.

The two just stared at each other for a few moments, before Bucky broke the silence and started talking, knowing that he owed Steve and explanation, and that Steve knew it too.

"I'm sorry it took so long to come back. I spent so much time afraid and confused, and not just of this strange world as everything started to come back, but of myself as well. I didn't know what to do, so I just hid myself to heal, out of instinct. That took a while," he earnestly said, and everyone caught the flash of pain in his eyes at the memory. "And when I finally figured out who you were to me, I was afraid that some part of the Asset might try to hurt you. And," at this he hesitated, "and I was ashamed."

Bucky quickly held up his hand in a placating gesture at the look on Steve's face, "and that was stupid, I know. Very stupid. By the time I was nearly better, ready to come back, I stumbled across all of this." He shrugged now, and what was left of the Asset, the Winter Soldier, seemed to melt away, "And I wanted to use them to prove to you, to myself, to everyone, that I was better now. I'm just sorry that I hurt you in the process. Being alone for so long, I forgot that we're a team."

Steve could tell his best friend was _not_ all better, that he was putting on a brave front and trying to act like he had before his fall from the train. Natasha and Wanda might see it too, but Steve knew there were still demons haunting him from behind his eyes, but Bucky was trying and struggling to make himself better, and now he was not alone.

For the first time since he had received his strength from the Super Soldier Serum, Steve rushed forward and gave Bucky a crushing hug with all of his might that was returned with equal enthusiasm.

His best friend was back.

His brother was back.

And they would get through all of this, together.

 **XXX**

Sarkissian, the HYDRA cell leader struggled futilely with her bonds. She knew she could not break free, but all the same she refused to just give up. Nonetheless, she felt a sense of satisfaction

 _The Avengers and the traitor think they've secured some great victory, but they know nothing. After today, HYDRA's strength will be revealed for the whole world to see and know. We will be reborn, and my cell and I shall be martyrs._

 _For the weapon has already been deployed!_

 **XXX**

 **Author Notes:**

 **Just a little longer to get to the real meat and potatoes!**

 **-0-**

 **Recommended fics:**

 **'The First Spring,' by Lizardbeth J**

 **'wanting not to want you (won't make it so),' by heroisms**

 **'** **falling asleep in warzones,** **' by heroisms**

 **-0-**

 **Please Review!**


	18. Farewell Halcyon Days

For better or worse, Marvel owns all of this stuff, not me.

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 _Previously: Bucky Barnes, formerly the Winter Soldier, contacted the New Avengers about a HYDRA cell he had infiltrated, and with his help they easily seized the enemy base. Meanwhile, SHIELD Director Coulson assembled his top agents to brief them on what they knew about the group that was manipulating events from the shadows, with the secretive organization being given the codename: 'Appendix.'_

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Chapter 18: Farewell Halcyon Days

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 _'_ _It's not what you don't know_ _that kills you, it's what you know for sure that ain't true.'_

— Mark Twain

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Captured HYDRA cell base

The battle was won, and now it was time for the clean-up whilst SHIELD extracted every piece of information they could get their hands on.

Nick Fury himself was calling in address the issue of 'Sergeant Barnes,' given the threat he could pose. Steve was a little wary of this, but was reassured by the fact that the ruthless spymaster was addressing Bucky by his pre-HYDRA slave identification.

Presently, Steve, Bucky, and a bunch of heavily armed SHIELD agents were in a medium sized room while Fury addressed them from a computer screen. _The agents are spread out to give themselves room to maneuver, while simultaneously constraining our own movements we might take_ , Steve noted, _and Bucky sees it too._ Vision and the Scarlet Witch were off making sure the prisoners were secure, but the Black Widow was at ease and unconcerned, knowing her ex-boss could be tactful when it was prudent.

"Sergeant Barnes," Fury began, "I hope you realize that we'll need you to come in for evaluation and debriefing."

A few agents tensed up at that announcement, worried the man they knew as the Winter Soldier, a dangerous HYDRA operative that had killed many people at SHIELD, would resist even if he seemed more human now, and Steve made ready to step forward to lend his best friend support. Yet Bucky just smiled, "Would this involve clean sheets and a soft mattress?"

Fury gave no visible response on the screen, except "Yes."

"Healthy food with some modern desserts? TV?"

The agents were a bit more at ease now.

"And the chance to meet some lovely modern dames?" he continued.

Steve was just grinning as moved up and clasped Bucky's shoulder, "Glad to have you back."

Bucky smiled back, "What? I've gone seventy years without a date! You seeing anyone?" Catching Steve's bashful look, he rolled his eyes, "Oh for—! Alright, once this is over, and I'm cleared, we're going out to find someone. No 'ifs' or 'buts!'" he added sharply at the expression on his best friend's face.

"Right!" Natasha concluded with a look that worried Steve and encouraged Bucky, "He can stay."

 **XXX**

"All clear, Banner," Steve said to Bruce over their secure radio channel, "and Bucky says we've got some stuff for you to see."

"Got it," Bruce answered.

"And good news," Natasha said with a smile that Bruce could actually hear over the radio, and recognized as the one that always meant suffering for someone, somewhere, "Operation: Virgin Sacrifice has gained another operative!"

Captain America was never so thankful that his mask covered most of his face.

 **XXX**

"Alright," Fury announced over the screen. "We can work over the details later. We'll need to you to keep an escort though, and restrict your access. And soldier?" Bucky gave a nod of acknowledgement. "Good to have you back." And with that the man signed off.

Bucky nodded his head and pursed his lips, "Interesting guy."  
"That's one way to put it," Steve agreed. "C'mon. I want you meet Dr. Bruce Banner. He invented a prosthetic arm that I think you'll enjoy."

"The 'Luke Skywalker' ones?"

"Yep!"

"Then before he gets here, can you explain the reference?"

"Nah. Right after we get back to base, the others are going to expect you to watch a marathon on the relevant movies. Besides, for someone who keeps stealing secrets, Natasha hates it when she catches people giving away movie spoilers."  
"That's your lady friend from before, right?"

"Yeah, about that—"

"Yeah, any quick tips on how to apologize? Flowers, chocolates?"

"Honestly? I'd stay away from anything that could be viewed as romantic. For your own good."

 **XXX**

SHIELD Helicarrier

Fury returned to the meeting room after Director Coulson asked him, it was an order really, to give SHIELD's congratulations to the New Avengers, and to make sure from the start that secure, yet humane and moral, methods, were being used to help Sergeant Barnes. They were optimistic, but they were still a little wary after what had happened with the former Agent 33. Yet everyone still exchanged smiles and happy remarks that the military hero was finally receiving the proper treatment he deserved, before they grimly returned to the matter at hand.

"Are we sure we're not dealing with two or more different groups?" Agent Felix Blake asked skeptically. "One supporting the Avengers Initiative, with one or more groups with their own agendas; which include destroying the New Avengers?"

"We thought of that, but the methods are too similar, and between us and HYDRA we would've caught sign if there were too many people involved with this. Whoever is doing this is killing of major power players without getting caught, when every intelligence organization in the world should have noticed. No matter how resourceful they are, any large group would have been located already and we would've heard about it. No, it has to be a single group, and a relatively small one. We don't understand the reason for the sudden shift in objectives, but we speculate that this is either all still part of their plan, or they had a falling out and one group killed the other. But we get the same results either way."

"And the same lack of clear answers," Hill retorted, the frustration clear on her face as she realized how she may have been a pawn in all this, again.

"What about the dead politicians?" an important analyst asked, hoping against hope for something concrete to work with. "Have you found any other pattern with the ones that we've confirmed were quietly killed off?"

"Uh, yeah, that's where things get awkward," Daisy admitted with an uncomfortable grimace. Under the table, Agent May gave the young woman a light tap on the ankle with her shoe, reminding her that Coulson was in charge.

"By awkward," Coulson continued in place of his protégé, "what we mean is that we've discovered a second pattern amongst all of the deaths we've been investigating. We've been going over as many deaths, natural and unnatural that have happened in the last few years as possible, to try and find out anything else." There were a few murmurs of surprise at this massive undertaking, and they all now understood one of the main reasons why Coulson had decided it was important to bring them all together.

"Some of them," the Director went on, "were murders that we've tracked to established contract killers, government activities, or even normal crimes, but not all of them. And when we looked a little deeper, we started discovering something…troubling." Every member of the audience subtly sat up straighter, knowing that Coulson was never one to hesitate in giving out crucial information. The man might have an appreciation for drama, but not for something like this, which only emphasized the gravity of the situation. Coulson stretched out his prosthetic hand, and Agent May passed him a thick folder. The other members who had arrived with him also placed thick folders on the table.

"Theatrics aside," Agent Weaver declared, "what are you trying to say?"

"These folders profile a surprising number of individuals who, before they died, were not too influential in the grand scale of things. What we find interesting though, is that each and every one of them was on the verge of becoming that. Moreover, they would have lent strong support for the anti-Registration movement. Again, 'would have,' if they had not been killed beforehand."

"Could you elaborate?" Agent Hill asked in confusion.

"The one that caught our attention, or should I say, _my_ attention, was a woman who was a diehard Captain America fan." Coulson looked around with a small smile, not at all embarrassed. "I was comparing her personal collection to my own, when I noticed how she had won the lottery a week before she died. No one was too suspicious, just a few hundred thousand and it went to a relative that the initial investigators had already confirmed was unaware of the prize money. Her cousin even put it straight into a charity that she had been connected with before her death. Nice of him." The Director's voice was still mostly calm and easy, but all of his direct subordinates could hear the edge bleeding into it now, "But when I looked at her profile more, I realized that if this woman had had another week or so, she could've quickly gone up in the world. She had all the necessary contacts, education, and ideas to quickly become very well established, and someone that other people would listen too while she threw everything she had into supporting her lifelong hero.

"Once we started looking at this angle, a lot more deaths we were investigating started coming together. And most of them would have opposed Registration for various reasons, particularly because they would be new and young people and less enamored with the greater security that most of the current politicians support."

"Wait, wait, wait," Blake threw in. "Are you trying to say, that someone's going around and killing people preemptively now? Removing potential players before they even get a chance to reach the board? What, are we dealing with another Clairvoyant?"

Coulson just smiled grimly at that, "Short answer: no. The original Clairvoyant used SHIELD files and other sources to pretend to be all-knowing, although whoever is behind this does indeed have access to an unfortunate amount of intelligence we assumed was unique to SHIELD. And yes, the Appendix has indeed shown an ability to analyze and predict the actions and reactions of important individuals, as well as identify those who would _be_ important, and do all of this better than anyone we've ever heard of before, but we already know they aren't precognitive."

"How are you certain?" a field agent said, asking the question that everyone wanted to be reassured on. The world was becoming an increasingly weird place after all, and no one was eager to deal with someone who had a genuine ability to see into the future.

"Because while they've had a head start on us, and have been acting unnoticed for so long, once we found a single clue, everything has started to unravel. Hopefully we can prevent any conflict over Registration simply by showing key officials, and especially the Avengers, how an unknown party has been trying to manipulate them."

Fury spoke up again after digesting this information that was new to him as well, "But are we any closer to discovering just what they are planning for the New Avengers?"

"So far, the Appendix seems to be encouraging a gradual progression towards Registration, while eliminating both those supporting more extreme government authority over those with powers, or those who would endorse groups like the New Avengers being even more independent than they are now.

"Yet as for why the Appendix is doing this, we just don't know." Despite this admission, Coulson still appeared confident, "And this is where all of you come in. We know that someone's playing us, but part of the problem is that we're discovering this late in the game, so we need to coordinate our efforts towards uncovering more information. Some of you will be helping us uncover any more irregularities in all of the deaths we are examining. Others of you will be actively searching for this group. My team will be doing what they can, but we've also got to help deal with the growing numbers of Inhumans we're encountering."

"Fortunately," Daisy spoke up, "this is actually helping with that. The former members of Afterlife, the main Inhuman settlement, are more supportive of us now because they're as disturbed as we are by the information we've shown them. We should be able to help the other emerging Inhumans more easily with them working alongside us, which is good because some of our best people have been so busy with this." Daisy, barely, managed to keep anyone from noticing her irritation that neither her nor the therapist Dr. Andrew Gardner could be helping the emerging Inhumans, and that they had from the get-go been assigned to this other project. Continuing, "The New Avengers have also been very active as a rapid response, and have helped in several instances, calming down terrified people with powers or taking down those who were willing to become monsters."

Not all of the agents were reassured by this, remembering how bloody their brief conflict with the Inhumans had been for SHIELD, and at the hands of such a small strike force of Gifted individuals, but they differed to their boss' judgment on the matter.

"But nothing significant has happened lately?" Agent Blake asked.

"Aside from extracting people who've demonstrated abilities for a psych evaluation, no, not really," Coulson answered.

 **XXX**

Unknown Location

"Another report of someone spontaneously gaining powers. We should really get a handle on that."

"I know, but it's still too random. As long as we keep the politicians moving as we want, and the Avengers continue to take up the slack, we should be okay."

"I trust your findings, but my gut isn't so sure."

"Let's just wait and see how it goes down with the HYDRA cells, alright?"

"Fair enough."

 **XXX**

SHIELD Helicarrier

"Finally," and at this Coulson actually looked slightly worried, "Steve Rogers will likely be bringing in the rest of the New Avengers in on this. He has assured us that once the others are warned, and prepared, he will tell Dr. Bruce Banner and Natasha Romanoff the truth together. It will likely be soon, in a setting to help maximize our chances of avoiding a catastrophe."

"But she's acting on your orders, isn't she, Fury?" Weaver accused. Then she stiffened with fear.

Fury was laughing.

Half of the audience would later swear that the sky had darkened at that moment, and the other half would only deny the existence of 'The Event.'

After a long moment, Fury regained control of himself, and panned his head around to address everyone in the room. "Romanoff has not approached Banner under orders to manipulate him. Everything has been of her own free will, and they have established a genuine relationship that is a lot more stable than what many SHIELD agents in the past have managed to establish. And if I were you, I would bury all _hint_ of those seven, yes I know how many, seven private little betting pools that've been going on regarding their love life and whether or not Banner is just another patsy."

Ignoring the reference to gambling/suicidal tendencies amongst his subordinates, Coulson gave a firm nod. "Agent Hill will keep us updated regarding the Avengers. Now then, regarding your individual assignments…"

 **XXX**

Captured HYDRA Base

"Keep Steve alive, and we're all good," was the first thing Natasha said to Bucky when they met, before the man could even open his mouth to address her. "After that, everything is in the past where it belongs."

The ex-assassin paused for a moment and then gave a small nod to the not-so-retired assassin. Bruce just smiled and reached over to shake the man's (remaining) hand, while holding a baby carrier with Laura in it in his other hand.

After some quick introductions with the secretly married couple, Steve, Bucky, and Natasha got down to business, with the former HYDRA slave leading them through the base.

"So Bucky, what were they doing here?"

"Well, Steve-oh, they were trying to replicate your scientist friend's work, or rather, someone else was helping them," Bucky turned back to look at Dr. Banner, "that's why I wanted you here specifically actually. If anyone can figure out how someone else planning to make gamma soldiers like that, it's you."

Steve stiffened, Natasha noticed, and Bruce frowned briefly a little at Bucky.

"It wasn't my intention," Bruce calmly corrected, "I'd never have done that. The whole thing was an accident."

Bucky just shrugged his shoulders at that, "Well everyone here talking about how it was your plan all along and you just pretended that it was an accident. Said it was how they were now able to do the same."

The couple froze on the spot, eyes staring wide at Bucky, who was now on edge as he registered the emotions playing out on their faces, while mental gears spun behind them. Steve also stopped, and with an apologetic expression took his mask off turned to face them.

"Steve," Natasha spoke in a voice of a Russian winter, "what do you know?"

Bruce's eyes were rapidly darting back and forth now between the three other people. With a resigned sigh, Steve spoke up, "Banner, a little while ago, Stark discovered that someone had sabotaged your experiment, he went to Fury to confirm it. Since then they've been trying to disprove their suspicions." Bucky had a pained face on as he realized what he had inadvertently done, while his best friend continued, "They said nothing because they were worried about how you would react, and while you were on your vacation, Fury approached me about it. And yes," Steve fixed a hard look on Natasha, "I was going to tell you both. That's why I said we needed to talk after this mission."

Bruce was breathing hard now, and Captain America and the Winter Soldier were backing up, veins were throbbing in Bruce's head, and his eyes were definitely green, and even Laura's presence did not seem to have any effect. Then two hands grabbed the sides of his head and forced him to look down into the eyes of the Black Widow.

"We'll find who did this to you," Natasha whispered, just loud enough for everyone to hear, "and what we'll do to them, will give _Fury_ nightmares!"

Her support, her own honest rage on his behalf at the pain he had gone through because of someone else helped stabilize Bruce and get him to concentrate on his breathing to slow down his heart rate, but he knew what the rumbling at the back of his head meant. " _Soon_ ," he whispered, " _we will make them pay._ _And_ pay! _And_ PAY!" And the presence within him growled in agreement and acceptance, as if it was acknowledging the need to find out who was responsible first.

Then something popped back into Bruce's mind, "Wait," he said with horror that dampened his rage for a moment with cold dread, "they were trying to make more Hulks!? Show me their lab!"

Everything that Bruce was wanted to race to their destination, yet even Natasha insisted that they maintain just a brisk pace, in case some HYDRA trap still remained. The presence of vulnerable Laura helped with this.

 **XXX**

At breakneck speed, Dr. Bruce Romanoff-Banner and the Black Widow worked their way through HYDRA's computers, aided by some passwords provided by a helpful Bucky Barnes.

"Rogers," Natasha bit out, "it looks like all three HYDRA cells were working on this together, with some unknown party providing the scientific expertise to make it possible. These guys were just grunts really, doing what they were told. They probably split the work between cells to help keep the others safe, with one of the others handling material acquisition, and the third working on assembling it under the cover of a factory that they control."

"Why does this group have so much information?" Rogers asked professionally. "Spreading it out in case one is taken down and so the others can pick up where they left off doesn't justify the security risk."

"The impression I got was that whoever's supporting them didn't want them to understand how it really worked, and wanted it to happen on their own schedule. So they only doled out bits and pieces. It's done by a blind drop to all of them," Bucky supplied, "and they were convinced that successful application of this device was the most important part, even if it got them caught, so long as they actually deployed the weapon."

"That helps confirm that they were working entirely on their own, that they cut themselves off from the rest of HYDRA to do this," Steve theorized. "If they could do it, they could take over what's left of HYDRA for themselves, but for us it means that all the information is confined to just these three cells."

"Yeah, but the drops suddenly stopped a little while ago."

"And I know why," Natasha said in a dead voice. "They gave them the rest in that last drop off."

"What—?"

"I mean Rogers, that this unknown backer suddenly provided all three cells with all they needed to make a Hulk. Just after we dropped the comet down in Africa actually."

"What!?" Bucky snapped in horror, "it shouldn't be for another week!"

"That's not all," Bruce said, sounding nauseous, "they've improved it since they used it on me."

Barnes cursed and Steve looked like he was about to, but Natasha calmly asked, "What do you mean?"

"For me, I was the only one targeted. _This_ is a device to work at range to permanently infect multiple people in one blast of radiation!"

"Where!?" Captain America barked, hand already on his radio to relay orders

 **XXX**

Quinjet

"It's where!?" a confused Sam asked within the tense atmosphere of the jet as they raced across the United States of America.

"Las Vegas," Bruce said, quite calmly.

"But why there!?" Wanda yelled in fear and frustration.

"According to what I can find," Bruce said over the comm screen while he was back at the captured HYDRA base, "they're doing it for several reasons. Hundreds of thousands of people within the blast radius, and enough surveillance cameras and phones on the internet to help them safely observe the effects. Plus the general terror appeal of wrecking a city of vice and pleasure and where everyone goes on vacation."

"They're planning to turn all of Vegas into _Hulks!?_ " Colonel Rhodes asked in a tone that made it clear he was hoping this was just a nightmare.

"Just when we thought HYDRA was down for good," Falcon muttered aloud.

"Not the whole city," Bruce corrected darkly, "it doesn't have enough range. But it will be enough for their scientists to still get a feel for it, and when the citizens who are affected by it shift for the first time, they'll go on a rampage! And with that many monsters about, and with everyone who's left running and screaming, it'll turn into a massacre!"

"I'm going put in a call to the military," Steve grimaced, though then his face lightened a bit, "and maybe Stark can help if we're too late. We'll need all the help we can get if we're going to evacuate everyone while searching for this weapon." War Machine followed suit, calling in all his contacts, with Vision doing the same for Iron Man.

"Careful who you tell," Natasha cut in, and elaborated as the men and synthoid turned to look at her. "Whoever is on site will be tapped into the local authorities. Bruce, if they get word of what's coming, can they detonate it early?"  
With a sick look, the scientist gave an affirmative nod, and while the reports were still sent to the authorities, they were done so a little more cautiously.

Once they were done, silence reigned, and then the Scarlet Witch suddenly shot up with a shocked look on her face. "Natasha," she said in a clear attempt at self-control, "where is Laura?"

" _There's nothing good that can come from that question_ ," all the men on the Quinjet thought.

"With Bruce," the mother answered suspiciously.

"Uh, I thought you said you were taking care of her," Bruce interjected over the radio.

Everyone turned to watch a hesitant Wanda push back a few bags, to reveal a loaded baby hamper with a sleeping occupant inside.

"The _one_ time we forgot to call in and check!" Rhodey hissed.

Natasha could only stare in horror, wondering if she had truly been in such a daze following the earth shattering revelations that she had accidently brought Laura along.

"Uhm, that might've been me," Bucky meekly said from beside Bruce on the comm screen, since he was still missing an arm and might have some other relevant intelligence tucked away inside his head. "I, uh, might've misheard what you said, and followed you with the baby hamper. Uh..."

"I have located a suitable location for us to leave Romanoff and her child," Vision interjected before things were said that could not be taken back. "It is a tall, empty office building, and the staff is off work for a company event. We can leave them both there and complete the mission without them," the synthoid finished, having gotten the relevant information off the internet.

"Right," Steve barked, "give us the co-ordinates!"

"Wow!" Sam broke in. "We can just drop them off somewhere else on the way."

"No, they're right," Natasha corrected. You'll still need all the help you can get, and if I'm not nearby then there's nothing I can do to help. I'll find some way to still be of use."

Since no one said anything else, Vision quickly rattled off the location of where they would be leaving Black Widow, and Bruce did a quick double check of his own on his tablet and admitted that the building looked secure. "Yes, that should be more than far enough away from the effects of the gamma bomb."

"Couldn't Natasha just take her back with the Quinjet?" Wanda asked puzzled.

"No," Sam answered, not unkindly, "we might need it to help deal with whatever's ahead."

"Nat," Bruce spoke, his voice stiff with suppressed emotion, "you and Laura stay safe."

"Don't you worry, Bruce," Natasha answered softly, she would have said 'dork,' but they were in public. "I'll keep our daughter safe. And they're all grown-ups here, they'll drop me off and then go take care of this." And once Bruce returned her smile, she disconnected the transmission.

 **XXX**

 **Author Notes:**

 **A little rushed since it is mainly setting things up for what is to come.**

 **Small clarification: Bucky made a genuine mistake; that his blunder is not some residual mind control at play.**

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 **Please Review!**


	19. Murphey's Law

For better or worse, I do not own any Marvel franchise.

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Many thanks to my wonderful Beta, AutumnFroste, who writes some pretty cool stories. Go read them!

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Chapter 19: Murphey's Law

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 _Previously: Bucky Barnes had freed himself of his Winter Soldier programming and discovered a HYDRA plot involving technology from an unknown party to create pseudo-Hulks. Believing that the creation of the Hulk was Bruce Banner's original intention, he inadvertently revealed to the couple the truth behind the Hulk's origin. Even worse, they learned that HYDRA had deployed a weapon to replicate the process of making a Hulk to the city of Las Vegas, one that would turn most of the population into gamma monsters._

 _To complicate matters, while the New Avengers were rushing to the scene, they discovered baby Laura had been left on the plane. Fortunately, a quick detour was planned to leave her and her mom at an empty office building outside of the range of HYDRA's weapon._

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 _'There ain't many around who can describe what it feels like to get hit by the Hulk. Simple fact bein' there ain't many around who can survive to tell the tale. There ain't no pain at first. It's like he hits ya so damn hard ya actually leave yer own body. It's when ya come back that ya feel the pain. An' ya realize yer goin' toe-to-toe with a walkin' earthquake._ '

—Wolverine, "Wolverine: Original Sin: Prologue," by Daniel Way

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Captured HYDRA Base

"Doc," Bucky began before being interrupted.

"Unless this is directly related to what we are doing right now, I don't want to hear it!" Bruce Romanoff-Banner snapped. Then he paused and massaged his forehead, repeating once again a meditative mantra to calm himself down. "Sorry. Sorry about that, it's just been a very long day, and I need to stay focused on this. See if you can find out something more on the operational side of this." And with that he returned to his work, and Bucky chose to not comment that the scientist's eyes were constantly green now.

 _Soon, soon_ , Bruce thought soothingly to the Other Guy, _you'll get your chance to smash, but first we have to know who. Nat will help us_.

An eager, hungry, rumble seemed to echo in his head, yet the pressure in his veins seemed to lessen a little. He could readily understand why Steve and SHIELD had wanted to keep this a secret from him, although they had underestimated his resolve and focus which allowed him to keep his rage in check for more deserving targets.

Returning his attention to the screen in front of him, Bruce tried to decipher the underlining technology that had made him into a monster. _It's more of a simplified instruction manual, giving only directions. Whoever made this, wanted HYDRA to be able to construct this without figuring out the underlining scientific principles, yet this part…_ Bruce stared in surprised recognition for a moment, before pulling out his tablet to consult his own personal notes. _That's something that I just figured out last week! And yet it was in an info packet HYDRA got months ago!?_

The blows to his pride were only intensifying the acid in his stomach and the war drums in Bruce's head as it became clear that while he was credited as being _the_ pioneering scientist on gamma radiation, molecular biology and several other scientific fields, the truth was that whoever had raped Bruce's life was far, far more brilliant. Most of what could be recognized was years, sometimes decades, more advanced than anything that the New Avengers were aware of. And the rest… _Could this be alien science? Yet how did they make it compatible with human tech? Even with HYDRA or SHIELD, I've never been capable of such seamless grafting of what should be incompatible technologies_. _Yes they've managed it, but never to this extent, never this finely._

Again, the Other Guy growled, bringing to the forefront another dread thought for Bruce, _They ruined my life. But they aren't just responsible for everything bad in my life, but also every single good that I've managed accomplished since the 'accident,' because thanks to them I could deliver the Hulk to the fights. Everything_.

Yet then Bruce felt something that seemed almost like a ghost of a slap to his face, and he knew what Natasha would be saying, as she looked at him with hurt-filled eyes, " _Everything?"_ he heard her asking. And then Bruce remembered Laura too. _No, not everything_ , he conceded.

Moreover, he knew the truth. _Even if Ross hadn't told me what he was really doing, I still rushed it. No one strapped me into that machine against my will, I did it to myself. Whoever did this might have sabotaged it, but I pulled the trigger when I should've know better. And it was_ my _choices to go fight for the Avengers. To be with Natasha. With Laura. "I am the master of my fate; I am the captain of my soul."_

And with that, the New Avenger's token pacifist turned his attention back to trying to find the people he wanted to kill.

 **XXX**

Tony Stark raced towards Las Vegas in his Iron Man suit at maximum velocity, dispatching orders to the Veronica Satellite to prepare to drop his newest version of the Hulkbuster down on location, along with another one that would interface with Rhodey's War Machine armour, along with some other 'toys.' "And make sure you've got everything Stark Industries' got ready to go on site," he instructed Pepper on his radio, "if this blows up on this, we've got to be on damage control from the get-go or this'll blow up in _everyone's_ faces!"

Pepper ignored her boyfriend's tone, knowing it was just stress driving him to talk like that, and reassured him that she would have everything under control.

 **XXX**

Quinjet

"Bruce," Captain America calmly ordered, "We need more information on where we're going."

"It's a hotel, Captain," Bucky answered in a professional tone over the Quinjets communication screen. "The plan was for the Las Vegas cell to have moved the gamma bomb from the assemblage factory to a hotel room. I'd say they're somewhere near the middle of the building so that they can have more time to respond to whatever happens."

"Police are trying to quietly evacuate everyone nearby," Colonel Rhodes chipped in, "but we're meeting resistance. They want to get everyone out now!"

"If HYDRA catches us trying to do that then they'll set it off, and we lose the whole city," Falcon snapped, then waved his hand in apology to War Machine to show he was just voicing his frustration.

"So we just charge right in and take them out?" Scarlet Witch asked, trying to calm her nerves.

"Yes," Captain America answered. "War Machine, Vision, and you just charge right in through the walls and don't stop until you've hit them. Falcon and I'll be right behind you."

"And if we're too late?" Vision quietly asked.

Steve Rogers answered without hesitation, "Then we hold them off and keep them busy while the authorities evacuate the civilians. Don't stay in one place, keep moving and keep their attention focused on you and lead them away from the civilians. We'll split up into small teams to cover more ground and watch each other's backs. And we keep doing it until everyone else is in the clear and then we fall back and get picked up. We'll then continue to lure them away from the civilians until Bruce, Tony, and SHIELD can devise something else."

 **XXX**

Sometime later

Las Vegas

Quinjet

"We're coming up on Vegas now," Vision noted in case anyone had failed to repeatedly check their location.

Braking hard enough to require maintenance when this was over, they stopped right over the office building they were going to leave Natasha at, and she jumped off with Laura carried on her back. Losing merely seconds, the Quinjet then stormed off again, racing towards their target.

 **XXX**

A police officer hurried to the side, ignoring the calls from his colleagues as he wove through the crowd of evacuating tourists. Finished dialing into his phone he began talking in quick, clipped words, "We're pulling people out from around the hotel, saying it's a bomb threat! They know! Detonate now! Repeat, detonate now! Hail Hydra!"

And then he pulled out his service pistol, shoved the barrel against his head and pulled the trigger.

Better to die as a man than live as a monster.

 **XXX**

A sphere of sickly green exploded out from the hotel, traveling at an incredible rate over the city blocks before dissipating.

 **XXX**

Office building

Natasha Romanoff-Banner hugged her baby daughter tightly as she looked off into the distance, knowing in an instant that it was the end of the world as she knew it.

 **XXX**

Science lab in Canada

"Sir!" a scientist yelled. "We've just a got a massive spike in gamma radiation!"

 **XXX**

Las Vegas

The city went quiet for a moment, and then a panicked roar tore loose from hundreds of throats. The storm was prolonged as more and more voices joined in; a symphony of pain and horror.

 **XXX**

White House, Washington D.C.

"Mr. President! Sir! We've got a situation!"

 **XXX**

Las Vegas

The tall multi-story hotel building began to disintegrate from within, crumbling down along with all the other buildings nearby, the noise drowned out sounds of fear and fury the echoed throughout the streets.

 **XXX**

Tony glanced at the readings he was picking up, and turned his attention back to directing his back-up; he had known from the start that this would go south, and had been prepared for a while now.

"FRIDAY, prioritize all resources for this, we're gonna need everything we can bring to bear."

 **XXX**

Las Vegas

The remaining police officers were nearly overwhelmed by the panicking crowds, screaming and running to try and get away from _whatever_ was coming. Soldiers rushed in to try and help, but the bulk of them were still arriving on the outskirts of the city.

Frantic reports held that whatever it was, it was spreading out from the epicenter of that green burst, but for some reason the most of it was coming _this way!_

An audible sigh of relief seemed to calm the crowd as a strange yet futuristic plane landed, baring a familiar symbol, and disgorged a colourful assortment of heroes.

Captain America spoke to calm and reassure everyone, projecting his voice so that it could be heard throughout the block, dampening the terror of everyone who heard it and spreading beyond to even those who could not hear his words. Everyone continued to hurry away from the madness behind them, but now no one seemed in danger of being trampled.

And with that, the Avengers charged into the smoke to buy time for the evacuation.

 **XXX**

Office Building

The mother and daughter were inside the building now, with Natasha taking stock of what they had available in case of emergency (i.e. the army of pseudo-Hulks got too close), and had made a disturbing discovery: Laura's SOS beacon was missing. _Bucky I will cut off your other arm if you forgot to pack it_ , she vowed, but she knew the fault lay with her as well; the turmoil from discovering Laura on the quinjet and trying to get her to safety was no excuse for failing to notice the emergency transmitter was missing.

 _Fortunately I have my own gear_ , and she reached up to send an update to SHIELD when _something_ made the hairs on her neck stand up and the 'active' lights on her Widow Bites darkened. All attempts to radio SHIELD or activate anything electronic failed. _EMP…_

 **XXX**

SHIELD Helicarrier

"How long until we can get there?" Director Coulson asked as he and the senior members of SHIELD stormed onto the command bridge.

Fully in control of herself like her boss, Daisy a.k.a. consulted the computer tablet before her. "All our remaining Quinjets are here, so we don't have anything significant near Vegas we can get there in time to help fight; just some air transports to help evacuate people—"

"Get them there," Coulson said sharply to a junior agent standing by for instructions.

"Sir, yes sir!" and she ran to relay those orders.

"The Quinjets can get there pretty fast," Daisy continued, "but by the time they can get there, American Air Forces will already be on point."

"And they'll be there in strength," Coulson conceded, knowing it was too dangerous to send in armed craft into such a situation; SHIELD's relationship with the military was still shaky, especially if Brigadier General Talbot was not on site. Moreover, given the number of planes that the US was likely to send in, SHIELD's own military forces would not be able to make any significant contribution. Unarmed vehicles evacuating refugees was acceptable, especially once Coulson got through to some of his contacts.

"But the Helicarrier will take three hours to get there in time." Daisy finished.

"Too long, but we should still head that way," her boss concluded. "Alright, what _can_ we do? What else do we know? Do we have satellites nearby?"

"The NSA has a few close enough, already hacking in," Daisy said with such casualness that some agents actually thought she was joking.

"Good. You," Coulson pointed at another junior agent, "make sure our lab boys are on this, we've got to see if there's anything we can do, even with what little information we've got."

Turning to a more senior agent, "Get ahold of your friends in the Chinese government, and make sure they're not trying to take advantage of this. And you," pointing to another woman, "same with the Russians."

Glancing at Nick Fury, the ex-Director just held up his cell phone, "Already being connected with the Director of the FBI," he simply said, and then returned his attention to whoever had answered.

Maria Hill was at a comm station to coordinate with her subordinates at the New Avengers Facility, so Coulson let her be. "Agent May!"

"Yes sir."

"Grab Hunter, Mack, and Morse, and whoever else, and take out that third and final cell! Full air support, take them out, grab all the intel, and destroy any trace of them!" The Director fixed her with a hard look, "No survivors unless they can provide something _very_ useful, we can't let a scrap of this get out to the wrong people, and we're going to be playing damage control with everything we've got as it is. I'll back whatever you do."

With a quick nod, Coulson's right hand turned and left, with her companions following her and also keeping up a cool composure to help reassure anyone they might encounter on the ship.

"D-did he just sanction a kill order!?" one of the more junior computer techs whispered to his neighbor.

"Yep," Daisy quietly answered from over his shoulder, making the young man give a start. "And he doesn't like it either, and not just because dead people can't talk to us, but we can't risk this happening a second time. And these sickos _knew_ what they were doing when they helped make this bomb, no one was stopping them from going to the authorities even when they realized they were part of HYDRA."

The Director turned back to the senior subordinates that had been assembled for the council, took a brief moment to evaluate them, and then began ordering some to head back to their posts abroad, judging that they would be needed onsite there given this new destabilizing factor.

"Uh, Coulson!" Daisy called out, the tone of worry in her voice making the hairs on Coulson's neck stand stiff. "We might have a problem!"

"What?"

"The senior officer for what the US is sending? It's Lieutenant General Thaddeus Ross!"

"Where's he at now!?" Coulson barked, knowing how this could end in disaster.

 **XXX**

Office building

Natasha Romanoff-Banner swore with dread as she saw the military vehicles drawing up around the building, and the soldiers that were disembarking, their gait that of trained professionals despite their lack of any clear unit identification.

 **XXX**

Outside of the office building

Thirty men rushed out of their armoured trucks, tranquilizer guns at the ready. Specially picked for this Black Ops assignment, they all knew what their orders were and what the repercussions would be when the pulled it off: taking back the power for the United States.

Their objective: incapacitating an Avenger and abducting the child with her.

Dirty business, but they all knew that if they did their job right, no one would get hurt.

 **XXX**

Outside of the office building

Ross' Mobile Command Vehicle

General 'Thunderbolt' Ross smirked in triumph as his men advanced forward. Despite official orders to the contrary, he had continued to discreetly monitor the 'New' Avengers to try and find out information on Banner, and had _finally_ successfully intercepted cracked their encryption. And what a prize they had discovered:

 _Banner_ of all people had a daughter, and where the baby and mother could be found.

With that information, Ross knew where his obligations lay. _Not that we'd hurt the kid of course, I'm not a monster. But someone as spineless as Banner will come in quietly if he even thinks we will after we grab her. Then after all these years, America will finally have its asset! The Hulk at our control! As for the mom, she's just a spy, good for assassination and seduction, but she stands no chance against these elite troops I've gathered_.

Still, the woman had been outfitted by Stark himself, so they had deployed a mini-EMP to deactivate any force multipliers the woman might have, while his men had been protected from its effect, and the SHIELD records that the woman herself had downloaded onto the internet had made clear that the rumour of her having the super-soldier serum were just that: rumours.

Thanks to the warning spread by 'Captain America' (privately, Ross was not sure the man still deserved that title, that someone else had woken from his long sleep, given the rather unpatriotic attitude that man had been displaying), military forces were converging on the city, making it easy for Ross to hide his specially selected forces within all the sudden domestic deployments. _Speaking of which…_ Ross turned towards his new aide, "Make sure that all officers keep their forces well back, we'll support the Avengers solely with drones," he gruffly ordered.

"Yes sir!"

Ross turned his attention back to the screen that showed his men preparing to enter the building the Black Widow was holed up in, knowing how the quiet whispers he had heard at the Pentagon had been tellingly quiet after the comet stunt by the Avengers. _They deliberately showed that they're a threat to US military superiority with that, and that they won't accept any oversight. It'll be better for everyone if they take a few casualties in this whole mess. Hell, we wouldn't be in this mess if not for SHIELD or people like Stark harbouring Banner. But if all goes well today, than the US will soon be back on top where it belongs_.

 **XXX**

The New Avengers slowed down as they reached outskirts of all of the destruction. Smoke and debris obscured their vision, but they could hear them coming: heavy footfalls in countless numbers that shook the ground as they slowly advanced, more terrifying than a stampede of elephants.

An endless earthquake.

"Captain," Vision said, "I've accessed all available cameras, the majority of them are still coming this way." He looked to the side, "Wanda, any luck?"

The eyes and hands of the woman in question were burning with her red aura, but she just shook her head. "There's too much…rage…and pain," she gritted out before turning off her powers. "I might be able to do something with one at a time, but I'll need to do it up close." Like she had with the Avengers when they were enemies.

"Falcon," Captain America ordered, "grab the stragglers and take them to the Quinjet and take them to safety. Keep doing it until everyone's safe."

"Got it!" Falcon replied as he took to the skies to get a better view for any remaining civilians with his special goggles, knowing that this was not his fight. He could distract and irritate what everyone knew and feared was ahead of them, but in this case that just might make things even worse.

And then the smoke in front of the heroes parted, and a green wave stepped forward.

 **XXX**

Office Building

Natasha gazed out from around the corner and down towards the bottom floor as the men swept into the building, checking the corners and each other's backs as they carefully advanced. Their weapons clearly meant for non-lethal capture.

Black Widow backed away and returned to where she had left Laura. "Alright Laura," she whispered, "Mommy's going to need you to stay quiet okay, you can't make a noise, no matter what happens, understand?"

Laura just silently gazed back, and a part of Natasha's mind chastised her for doing something as pointless and unprofessional as talking to a baby who could not understand her, yet the ever growing side of her that had been awoken in the last few months silenced the cynical whispers.

And with that the female Avenger pulled Laura and her carrier onto her back and retreated further into the building.

 **XXX**

They were confused disorientated, it was written on all their faces. And then they saw the puny beings in front of them. Could they be responsible for what was so wrong?

The men and women were as big and green as the Hulk, torn and dirty clothing dangling down, many of them naked from their exertions. Muscles flexed as they gazed down at the New Avengers, and then one of them started to snarl.

And then another.

And another.

In a heartbeat they were roaring in fury at the four people in front of them.

"Maybe we shouldn't have come here," Wanda muttered.

"No," Vision grimly corrected, "something else would've set them off, only closer to the civilians."

"Don't worry guy," Tony calmly cut into the New Avengers frequency, "I've brought some back-up. Rhodey, link up with my suit."

"On it."

And with that, Iron Man slammed to the ground on one knee with one fist cracking the cement in front of him, his confident pose strengthened by the fully formed Hulkbuster armour he wore, making the enemies they were facing pause in surprise.

Around the New Avengers more and more figures landed, with one sporting the War Machine metallic paint scheme latching on to War Machine to give him the same increase in firepower and protection.

"Just a little something I started working on in my spare time," Iron Man announced. "Sophisticated programming tailored towards fight the Hulk. Closed off from wireless control too, all except for sending telemetry data on what they're facing straight to me. Voice commands only. Should help even the odds against these hulklings."

And then with perfect synchronization, all of the robots smashed their right fist into the palm of their left hand.

"'Hulklings'?"

"Yep, called the name. Sorry Capsicle."

"Focus. Let these suits go first so that we can get an idea of what we're dealing with, and it'll buy us some more time. Vision, scout ahead, don't engage unless necessary, find out why they're all coming this way."

"It's because they're angry and afraid," Wanda whispered aloud to herself, before trying it again louder, "It's because they're angry and afraid!" No one took their eyes off the hulklings, but she felt their attention on her. "I can hear their thoughts. Most of them are terrified and angry, and they're trying to stay together to feel safe."

"And if just a few started off in one direction, the rest would follow," Tony finished grimly. "Well, at least they're all mostly in the same place."

"They're also headed straight towards the office where we left Natasha and Laura," Vision said, and everyone tensed anew with worry. "Not exactly, but close enough."

Captain America raised his hand towards his radio to send a warning, then stopped and lowered it. If the hulklings got past the New Avengers, it would not matter where Romanoff ran, and she would be well aware by now what was happening. Everyone was.

 **XXX**

Office Building

Pushing aside any doubts or concerns, Natasha calmly and methodically worked away at repairing her weapons. The EMP had induced high currents and voltages within her electrical equipment, causing serious damage to key components. Stark Industries technology still be sensitive to such attacks, only something the size of his armour was large enough to include such protections, but given how redundant some of his equipment was, someone of her talents and genius could get some of it working again. _But only some of it, I'm not going to be able to get full capacity working in time._

 _Really wish that rumour that I have had the super-soldier serum was true right now_. She suppressed a grim smile, _Of course that only started to try and justify why someone like me could_ possibly _take down so many threats_.

It was still possible that help might arrive in time, Stark had tried to sneak in little transmitters of his own to monitor both her and Laura's locations, but those had been set so that FRIDAY would only ping them at random intervals so as to not leave a constant signal to be tracked. Unfortunately that would require FRIDAY to check in the near future after she and Laura had been dropped off, and frankly the Avengers might be too busy to come help.

 **XXX**

Battlefield

Thrusters roaring, half of the Hulkbuster drones took to the sky and unleashed a barrage of missiles and repulsor blasts to disorientate the front ranks of the citizens. With perfect coordination, the other red-and-gold soldiers charged forward into the army of hulklings, repulsors on their elbows accelerating their fists to give hammering blows as they barreled through like linebackers, breaking through into the ranks of the hulklings, whilst their mechanical brothers provided air support with inhuman precision and timing.

Then hands larger then melons grabbed ahold of them.

The first ones hit by all of the firepower or steel fists were only dazed, and turned back around to dogpile the drones. The ones in the air were suddenly dodging and swerving and firing to intercept projectiles that were flying at them from the background.

"By those angles, some of those are being thrown from blocks away," Steve spoke, never letting his calmness or confidence falter, giving simple facts to his teammates, not concerns.

Twenty cars went flying towards the airborne drones, blown up far in advance, but then hulklings, men and women, leapt down from the surrounding hotels that were still partially intact. Two or three would grab on with death grips, while another would locks its legs around the Hulkbuster's torso and begin tearing it apart with his or her fingers.

Their combined weight dragged them all down enough for more to jump up and pull the drone down towards the eager and violent hands below.

Tony had sent his forces to engage a few dozen hulklings, but now there was easily hundreds assembled now, on the ground, grasping onto the buildings above, and even more just breaking through walls to march forward.

"Well, that was morbid," Tony said dryly as he watched a hulkling munch on the 'head' of one of his doppelgangers.

"Frankly I'm kind of glad," Wanda deadpanned, "those things were another disaster waiting to happen. Did you at least get anything useful out of them?"  
"I'll address that first remark later, as for the second…nothing good."

"Spill it, Tony," Steve ordered, his senses picking up how more hulklings – _Great, now I'm doing it_ — were approaching, and the ones in front of them were almost done with the trashed robots.

"Just confirmation of what we just saw. They're all as strong and fast and tough as the original Big Green."

 **XXX**

SHIELD Helicarrier

"Talbot! You've got to do something about Ross! You know he's both obsessed with Banner _and_ has a grudge against him!" Coulson firmly stated, staying, by a hairsbreadth, away from either giving an order or letting show how afraid he really was.

"My hands are tied, Coulson!" Brigadier General Talbot answered with frustration, quickly grasping the seriousness of the situation given what the SHIELD director had just told him, vindicating the private doubts he had already been harbouring even before this call. "The man outranks me, he's the man on the scene, and he's pulling some major strings to make sure he stays that way. I'll see if there's anything I can do, but I'm not confident." And with that he signed off.

"Director?"

Coulson turned in surprise to note how Fitz and Simmons were communicating from a nearby screen and looking at him. "Give me what you've got," he ordered.

"Nothing good, we're afraid," Simmons answered. "So far we've told Dr. Banner not to transmit us the technical details of the bomb—"

"—Because we're too afraid of someone else intercepting this," Fitz cut in.

Personally, Coulson was giving increasing consideration towards just ordering them do it anyway, if only to save time, but he knew that would just cause a future nightmare.

"Yes, but even with what we've got, neither Fitz and I, nor Dr. Banner, are seeing anything useful, sir. The technology is just too advanced, we'd need weeks just to break down the underlying science, and Dr. Banner understands all of this even better than we do and has everything right there in front of him, but even he doesn't know what to do! We aren't going to solve this soon enough I'm afraid."

"Alright." Coulson took a deep breath, and fixed them both with his hardest gaze. "People are going to be bringing up the nuclear option. What would that do in this case?"

Both scientists blanched and shot horrified looks at each other before turning back to their boss.

"T—that would be a terrible idea, sir," Fitz said with increasing firmness. "We don't know what exactly more concentrated radiation, of any kind, would do to the Hulk, or a whole mess of them for that matter. But SHIELD scientists still believe that it would be a very, very bad idea to find out."

"Then I want a full analysis filled out and sent to all relevant parties ASAP!" Coulson said, relieved to take that option off the table. He looked at Maria Hill, "Get them the contact information they need. We need to keep anyone from nuking the US!"

Hill gave a quick nod, and then paused to look at the readout that showed which direction the oncoming army was headed, "What will Dr. Banner do if the hulklings kill Romanoff or you-know-who?"

"Let's not find out," Coulson answered, knowing that was all he could really say. _Thank goodness Ross can't know about Laura and that Natasha and her are in the city_ , unaware of the general's intercepts. And with that he prioritized his mind back onto doing whatever possible to keep the world from collapsing from this insanity.

 **XXX**

Battlefield

No matter where they looked they saw green.

The New Avengers fought with all their teamwork and skill, giving their all to buy time for the civilians, and to try and divert the course of the horde. Dirty from rolling away from every blow that came near them, cut and bleeding from the shrapnel sent flying from all the near misses, but they kept on fighting.

They were on their own.

The military was 'helping,' but nothing the New Avengers were really appreciating. While the incoming missile drones were apparently more powerful than even Iron Man was expecting, they were still next-to-useless against the hulklings, and were more dangerous to the New Avengers.

"All you're doing is getting them angrier! And that just makes them stronger!" Colonel Rhodes yelled into his radio, trying to get the distant military to listen to reason.

"It's distracting some at least," Iron Man hissed as he fired more military-grade flares, disturbed at how fast the hulklings were recovering from the (supposedly) blinding lights.

"I think their senses have also been enhanced," Captain America commented as if he could read Iron Man's mind. "Their ears and noses still function, and their eyes don't suffer any lasting damage. Maybe even healing it up."

A flicker to her peripheral had Scarlet Witch throw up a red shield with her powers, protecting her from a drone that had hit too close. Most were detonating right amongst the hulklings, but some were still coming far too close to the heroes.

"Stay mobile and keep striking to throw them off balance, use their strength against them," Captain America said in his voice of command that he _knew_ even Iron Man would obey. "FRIDAY, see if you can get into the drones' software and keep them away from us. Also make sure that their present flight paths won't lead the hulklings back anywhere close to the civilians!" he directed the AI.

"Are you sure that we shouldn't cease them altogether?" Vision asked as he let another car pass harmlessly through him and then scythed a beam from his forehead to strike multiple green legs to trip them.

"They're still distracting, and they can't have too many more left," the Captain calmly answered as he slid between a pair of legs, smashing his shield into the backs of the knees and rolling over to dodge the savage blow from the hulkling behind the first one, hitting the mutated woman's wrist with his shield so that the blow was redirected so that it smashed the falling figure of the first Avenger's original target into the cement.

 **XXX**

Office building

"Remember," Ross said for a final bit of encouragement to his men as they entered the darkened building, "she may call herself an Avenger, but she's just a spy. She's outside of her comfort zone and vulnerable. Stay alert, and you'll track her down."

 **XXX**

Battlefield

Captain America flipped over another fist and struck in two different directions with a kick and swing of his shield, distracting two hulklings at once, giving Vision a chance to blast them both back with the Mind Stone. _We're barely holding on_ , Steve admitted to himself as his team continued their, barely, orderly retreat. _But we've got to keep their focus on us until Falcon says that everyone's clear!_

Scarlet Witch was gasping with effort as she struggled to keep standing. Another hulking came down on her from above, and again she threw up a barrier with her powers to repel the enraged woman, no longer bothering to try and force people's minds into calming down, for she did not have the time between each attack.

A flick of the Witch's fingers and some loose gravel flew into the eyes of another hulking, distracting him enough for her to safely pull Captain America backwards before he could be flanked. An oversized repulsor blast blew by her head from War Machine, and she turned to see a hulkling standing back up while holding onto its knee, having evidently tried to sneak up on her.

"Fall back another twenty meters!" Captain America yelled. "Witch and Hulkbusters first!"

Knowing that they dared not take to the air, and that they were the slowest, Iron Man and War Machine complied, with the former grabbing the Scarlet Witch since he was still faster than an average human in his suit. Vision and Captain America continued to dance around to buy their teammates time before retreating under covering fire.

Making another flip to avoid a crippling punch, Captain America took in his team with a single glance: they were all nearly exhausted, and their morale was barely holding on.

"Sir!" a concerned voice broke in over their radio link. "The rest of the hulklings have nearly arrived and are starting to encircle you! That's not far enough!"

"I know, FRIDAY," Steve answered the AI, "I can hear them, but if we retreat too far then some of them will take interest in something else."

Three more buildings suddenly simultaneously imploded and exploded outwards as more of the city's former citizens broke through, ready to swarm and overwhelm the New Avengers.

 **XXX**

Captured HYDRA base

Bucky Barnes paused and looked around as something felt amiss.

 **XXX**

Outside of the office building

Ross smiled under his mustache as his men continued moving into the building unopposed, knowing that he was finally in control of the situation, not even paying any attention to reports about the other monsters, confident that the costumed freaks would do well enough, and that he had enough firepower assembled to finish the job.

 **XXX**

SHIELD Helicarrier

"Isn't there anything we can do!?" Skye snapped in frustration as they took in what the satellite feeds and camera footages were displaying for them.

His face set in stone, Coulson just shook his head.

 **XXX**

Battlefield

Roaring, the green wave surged forward to tear apart the puny beings and then spread beyond the city, when a burst of light fell from the sky.

Leaping from the Bifrost, Thor swung his hammer down upon shoulder of the closest hulkling, smashing her to the ground. Behind him charged Lady Sif and the Warrior's Three, while throughout the city, again and again beams of rainbow light stabbed down.

The armies of Asgard had come to Midgard.

 **XXX**

 **Author Notes:**

 **Murphy's Law: '** **Anything that can go wrong, will go wrong.** **'**

 **Special thanks to theicemenace and KaydenceRei for their help with this chapter and the next one! And of course my wonderful Beta, AutumnFroste.**

 **"I am the master of my fate; I am the captain of my soul" is quoted from "Invictus: by William Ernest Henley.**

 **If anyone is curious as to how Ross pulled this off, despite Fury thinking to himself earlier that he kept the man under constant surveillance, well, Fury underestimated the man, and both he and SHIELD were too distracted with other problems and pulled too many resources into investigating the Appendix. And in fairness, they had reason to be distracted.**

 **-0-**

 **To give you an idea of what to expect for the next chapter, it just popped into my head while listening to the song 'Indestructible' by Disturbed.**

 **-0-**

 **Please Review, and I will get back to you!**


	20. Unleashing the Monsters

For better or worse, Marvel owns all of this stuff, not me.

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Chapter 20: Unleashing the Monsters

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 _Previously: Bruce and Natasha learn that the creation of the Hulk was the result of deliberate sabotage, and they are both a tad miffed. As in literally wanting to kill people miffed._

 _HYDRA succeeded in setting off the device that the Appendix provided them, creating thousands of rampant pseudo-Hulks, dubbed 'hulklings' by Stark. The New Avengers and Iron Man got their rears handed to them, while Natasha fights off the US army under General Ross who are after her daughter._

 _All hope seems lost, yet then Thor appears with the might of Asgard behind him._

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 _'Father, give me a storm that would tear the sky._

 _'Give me lightning that would burn the world.'_

—Thor Odinson, 'Prelude to Infinity' by Jonathan Hickman

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Again and again Heimdall directed the Bifrost down upon Las Vegas, spearing down right in front of the hulklings, knocking them backwards, and from that light leapt warriors of legend, clad in gold and fury.

Lady Sif sidestepped from one hulklings blow, slashing her sword into his arm, biting into the bone to finish deflecting the strike and unbalance the brute.

Quick as a hawk, Fandral was past them both and cutting the hamstrings of the same hulking with his swift sword, while then turning to distract more of the monsters. Hogun's mace finished bringing him to his knees, and Volstagg's axe knocked the creature all of the way down. Four golden clad Einherjar warriors advanced to pin their spears into the hulklings joints to keep him down, and Sif and the Warrior's Three turned to their next glorious foe.

"These creatures seem formidable," Fandral said offhandedly as he dodged another fist bigger than his head, his sword moving as a blur as he cut muscle tendons and arteries, hurting the hulking as fast as it could heal.

"But they lack discipline," Sif shot back, iron self-control keeping her in check as she advanced forward.

Centuries of warfare clashed with barbaric rage for audiences across the world, as men in antiquated seeming armour moved with inhuman grace and speed as they tore through the ranks of the horde. While individually outmatched, their training, numbers, and teamwork were going toe-to-toe with a force that made Earth's own military seem impotent.

For some viewers as this was broadcasted worldwide, it was awe inspiring. For others, it was a horrific reminder of how outmatched humanity really was in the grand scheme of things.

More and more hulkings were knocked down by the arrival of the Bifrost, and were then trampled down by the advancing ranks of the Asgardian warriors. Before they could get up, more of the Einherjar would stab them with their blades to hold the beasts to the ground, aiming to save the people of Midgard who had been bewitched.

Some ignored their orders as the bloodlust took ahold of them, yet discovered to their horror that even stabbing a spear through one of the monster's eye sockets would not make it stop. It only made it angrier after it tore the weapon out and regrew its eye. That was enough to worry even the legendary Asgardians, yet they fought on nonetheless.

Like a vice the army advanced from all sides, pinning in the horde, while a few isolated bursts of the Bifrost dispatched soldiers to deal with the outliers who had not joined together.

Asgardian fighter craft took to the air and laid down suppressing fire that tore apart the larger clumps of irradiated citizens, letting the infantry advance while their foes were still distracted and healing. And against these injured and disorientated individuals, the infantry had little difficulty subduing before they could heal.

And through this madness, onward charged Thor as he led his father's armies, rallying with the Avengers.

"Thor! What're doing here!?" Tony cried, "Not that we're complaining of course!"

"Father had Heimdall keeping a loose eye upon you, so we were aware of what was happening. He started taking precautions once he learned of the possibility that someone might be making more of the Hulk!"

"By sending an army!? Does he have any idea what that's going to do here!?"

"I know, but in truth we had little choice. This horde stands to sweep over your world unless we stem the tide here and now! And I have ordered them to avoid killing as much as possible, to prevent a slaughter! I will try to convince my father to later give reparations to your people, to try and alleviate their concerns for Asgard."

Lady Sif and the Warrior's Three exchanged surprised looks at this since such an action would fly in the face of Asgard's pride –even if the merest of trinkets should be enough to satisfy the mortals— but decided to save it until after this glorious battle. The green giants were formidable foes, pushing the agility of Asgard's finest to the limits as they needed to dodge every blow. A single hit, regardless of shield or armour would send one of them flying, badly injured. Moreover, while the Asgaridans had the numbers, each hulkling they defeated required several warriors to keep him or her pinned down.

Centuries of experience aided Thor as he took measure of his foes. These were innocents whose own bodies had been turned against him, and had yet to commit any serious crimes (wide scale property damage was casually dismissed), so he did not wish to bring out the big guns yet. Moreover, there was something…different about these hulklings, something that Banner had when he unleashed his Beast that these people lacked.

 _Confidence?_ And then Thor saw it was true, that there was anger in all of them, yes, but also fear. _And a panicked beast is even more dangerous_ ," Thor reminded himself, " _they are so afraid, and are just lashing out. They feel, no, they know, they have nothing to lose and everything to gain by destroying us. Yet if we can hold the initiative, even if they_ are _as strong as Dr. Banner, I_ _know that we will be triumphant!_

"Eyes!" the god roared aloud, his warriors quickly looking away and covering their vision, with the Avengers following suit.

Down came the hammer, and he showed why they called him the god of _Thunder_ , with a blinding flash of light and a boom of sound that sent all his foes staggering.

Onward the gods from Midgard's myths charged, fighting to corral a mob of monsters that mankind had been helpless against, while hundreds more of the hulkings rushed forward to strike down the puny beings.

 **XXX**

SHIELD Helicarrier

"Why are we seeing live video footage of this?!" Coulson angrily snapped as he looked at footages of what resembled the Third World War, complete with lightning storms, Thor visibly bringing down a tornado, and ancient armies sparing off against victims of mad science. "This is supposed to be a military operation!"

Fingers flying over her keyboard while other geeks and nerds backed her up, Skye searched for an answer, violating privacy laws with every keystroke. "It's not just the media, cameras throughout the city are broadcasting to the whole planet and I can't shut it down!"

"It's all part of the set-up!" her boss breathed out, "Whoever's doing this _wants_ the world to see, and they made sure the media would have all it needed beforehand!"

 **XXX**

Pym residence

Scott Lang's grip on Hope van Dyne's hand was like a vice, and no one dared breathe as they watched the scenes on Hope's laptop.

 _This is what it would've been like if we let the Yellowjacket suit and Pym Particles get loose_ , Scott thought distractedly, watching as an entire city had been weaponized.

 **XXX**

Parker residence

 _Oh God, the gods are here!_ Peter thought to himself in horror.

The world had been willing to accept Thor and the idea that the gods of myth were actually aliens. For the former, it helped that he was handsome and heroic as he fought for humanity. With the latter, it had been an intellectual acceptance, aided by the original Star Trek TV series, not an emotional one. Now everyone had to accept that there was an entire _species_ of warriors who liked to regularly, or so it seemed, drop in and fight monsters in Earth's cities.

 **XXX**

Stark Tower

Pepper Potts pressed her hands to her mouth, praying that the Avengers would be safe, but above all, praying for Tony to come home.

To be safe.

To be with her.

 _I can't lose you again, not after what happened with_ _Killian and Extremis_ _!_

 **XXX**

Generic house somewhere safe in the United States

Professor Elizabeth 'Betty' Ross stared in horror at what she could see on her I-Phone's little screen, her entire class craning their necks to view what was happening on their own personal electronic devices, their studies forgotten.

"Oh, Bruce," she breathed out, knowing how this would hurt him, that someone had found a way to finally do it, to make more Hulks. _Is the General behind this?_ she thought sickly, refusing to even think her father's name, much less say it.

 **XXX**

Office Building

They expected her to hide until help arrived, not attack.

They had been making their way through a floor filled with cubicles when they stopped.

"Sir! Got some tripwires here!"

"Means were getting close, can you get around?"

Then a sun lit up in their midst, flashbombs lighting up the darkened room and stabbing through their night-vision goggles. Only half were disorientated, but their movements set off the rest of the tripwires which lit off the rest of booby-traps, taking them all off guard just long enough.

Natasha Romanoff-Banner danced around the Black Ops soldiers, her electric batons striking them down anyone who got too close, while always maneuvering to keep someone in front of her to act as a meat shield against anyone trying to get a shot at her.

"Move, move, move!"

"Pin her down!"

"Sir! She's got the kid on her back!"

Instantly predicting another man's intention to bulldoze her down from his subtle body-language, Natasha spun on one foot to take his legs out from under him while holstering one baton while the other shocked the falling soldier even as he went down, putting him out of the fight for several hours, even as she palmed more of her taser disks and threw three of them to incapacitate four more attackers while her legs shot her forward to avoid more gunfire.

Rolling with one arm positioned just so that Laura never touched the ground despite being strapped to her mom's back, she came up throwing her last flash bombs at another group of soldiers in a repeat of her initial ambush, and tore into them with both batons again. The last three were better though, for while they unwittingly blocked any of their other comrades from taking any shots at her, one still managed to knock a baton from her hand, while the other drew a knife out of desperation that damaged her Widow's Bite attached to her other wrist.

The remaining soldiers tried to get a clear shot, cursing at how the lobby's layout provided her with additional cover and made it harder for them to advance, but they were nearly there.

Natasha disengaged on instinct, not knowing what clues had forewarned her, pulling back into the adjacent hallway before the other soldiers could get a clear shot, while throwing down the last of her smoke grenades.

She ran from them with reckless speed, counting on the fact that they would advance more cautiously, so as to not rush into any traps and to quickly assess their downed squad mates. Reaching the end of the hallway, she ducked around the corner, knelt down to place her left hand against the ground, and cut off all her senses except for both hearing and touch as she felt for vibrations through the ground.

Visualizing their locations, her right hand snaked around without her looking, and her gunfire tore through the legs of the remaining soldiers, dropping them to the ground as Stark's custom armour-piercing bullets ate through what protection they had. The only two who were untouched dropped down and started to drag their teammates back for emergency first aid, effectively taking them out of the fight as well.

Silently going up the nearby staircase, Natasha decided that she was in the clear.

Then for the first time she made a sound, as she worriedly checked to make sure Laura was okay, but the bright-eyed baby was only smiling.

 **XXX**

Ross' Mobile Command Vehicle

Ross just stared at the video screens from the soldiers' head cameras in disbelief.

 **XXX**

Battlefield

The soldiers of Asgard rallied to Thor, heedless of the flying debris and flashing lightning above, until they finally heard the Warrior's Three frantically ordering them to halt. For the Thunder was calling down the full measure of his wrath, unleashing more power than he had ever displayed since fighting the Destroyer in New Mexico.

A tornado tore through Las Vegas, pulling in the hulklings even as Thor swung his hammer around in a circle above his head, safely within the heart of the storm, pinning his foes in place for his support fighters and fellow Avengers to blast the already disorientated people out and onto the ground where they were brutally pinned down.

"Times like this…" Tony spoke aloud as he took it all in.

"Yep, proud to be an Avenger," Wanda agreed with a smile as her red aura blasted another hulkling woman down for some Asgardians to grab. Iron Man's helmet turned to look at her for a moment, before returning to concentrating upon the hulklings.

Within the wind and fury, Thor was starting to feel his breath quicken, but maintained his focus, knowing that this could be the final push to corral all of these victims. Then he caught a glimpse of something green and covered in tattoos from the corner of his eye.

 **XXX**

SHIELD Helicarrier

"Coulson, got some good news!"

"Give it to me, Daisy."

"Satellite imagery just showed us why we haven't seen any 'kid hulklings.' It looks like the adults gathered them all up in the center," Agent Daisy Johnson answered.

"Protecting their young," Coulson mused. "At least that lowers how many we've got to deal with, and keeps them safe."

"Yeah, but the kids'll be even harder to calm down," Daisy pointed out.

"Right," the Director conceded, hiding his frustration. He glanced at Fury, but the man just shrugged in equal helplessness. There was nothing for them to do, only watch.

 **XXX**

Battlefield

Thor slammed to the ground, and did not rise.

"Thor!" Iron Man yelled, risking the sky as he rushed forward to grab his friend. The Warrior's Three surrounded their prince and friend, striving to buy time, but Thor's eyes were closed, his face smeared in purple and red while a gigantic and hairy hulkling advanced.

Dismayed, the Asgardians turned towards their fallen prince, and then the hulklings struck back, knocking away those who were holding down their brethren, and attacked with renewed hate and desperation.

Glancing around to help rally their alien allies, Steve's stomach dropped at what he saw in the distance: the office building where he had left Natasha and Laura. They had been driven so far back initially, and now they were in danger of being overwhelmed, with his friend and her daughter right in the way. _No, they would have seen all of this and have gotten far away already_ , he reassured himself, before turning back to the fight with renewed determination as he strove to find the catalyst needed to save the day.

 **XXX**

Office Building

"You don't want to do this, Ross," Natasha's spoke into a liberated radio. "You think you can control the situation, but no one can. And you should be more worried by what's going on outside."

But in all truth, it was just a bluff.

The EMP that the general had opened up with had fried the bulk of her equipment and weapons. The flashbangs had been largely chemical based, enough for her to improvise triggers, especially by having most of them triggered by wires. The taser disks had been jury rigged together and for every disk that she had thrown, it had cost three to create, and she had no more. Her radios, mini-computer, hacking equipment, and everything else had been cannibalized for her Widow Bites and Batons to provide weapons to face the immediate threat she faced. The only reason they had not found her and Laura from the start was because of the custom material making up her outfit and the baby carrier, which blocked out thermal signatures without requiring any electronics.

It was imperfect though, which is why she had to risk carrying Laura with her, they might have located her before Natasha could launch her ambush. Moreover, despite incredible danger to her baby by carrying her into a battlefield, Natasha _refused_ to let her precious out of sight. There had been too many surprises today, including by the military, for her to risk letting Laura out of mommy's sight.

The soldiers had retreated with their most heavily wounded, they had lacked the manpower to carry all of their unconscious, yet Natasha scowled at the weapons the Black-Ops had, noting the tech built into the grips which made her hesitant to use them herself. _That was the last of my non-lethal ordnance too_ , she chastised herself.

 **XXX**

Ross' Mobile Command Vehicle

Ross' aid patiently waited for the general to stop swearing in frustration at what a single woman had casually accomplished. "Alright," the older man finally ground out, recognizing the actual weakness of the woman's position, "contact the units around Las Vegas. Pull them back from securing the area, as many as we can. We'll send them in and flush her out."

"General," the aid dutifully reminded, "we don't have any more tranquilizer guns. And those men and women are helping with the evacuation."

"No, this is more important. And if she's insane enough to keep fighting, tell them to try and wound her. Failing that, all that matters is the baby." Seeing the flicker of hesitation in his subordinate's eye, Ross gave a reassuring smile, "Don't believe everything they say about the Avengers. They're not immortal, even the ones who claim to be gods. And she can't have many more of those toys left either."

"No sir, but she is a famous killer."

"She wouldn't dare," Ross ground out with iron. "She kills a single American soldier, the Pentagon will have her and the Avengers crucified! They'll be hunted as terrorists!

"And you've read the reports, she used stealth and seduction to do most of that, what's she got here except a bunch of leftover tech that Stark made for her? He's obviously made something to shield against an EMP! She's outgunned and outclassed and outmaneuvered, and she knows it!"

 **XXX**

Outside the city

Falcon flew in the last of the civilians, dropping the man and his sons off with a rapid SHIELD dispatch, when he paused in shock at who had climbed out of the newly arrived Quinjet.

"Doc! Wh—what're, are you sure you want to be here?"

The surrounding evacuees stopped to look at who Falcon was focused on, with some withdrawing in horror when they recognized him.

"Banner!"

"—ulk!"

"Monster!"

"—avage!"

"Did he cause—?!"

"Beas—"

Doctor Bruce Romanoff-Banner strode forward, his stride swift and angry. Seeing something out of the corner of his eye, he paused to note how many people were aiming their phones at him.

"Are you people filming this?" he asked despite how they obviously were.

Hesitantly, some of the nodded.

"Good. I want to pass a message: I don't know who you are, or why you did it, but all I know is that YOU did this to me, turned me into a monster. And now, it looks like you've done the same, to all these people. And when I find you, and I will, I will snap your neck, without even turning green."

Banner noted how the audience was backing away now, and Sam Wilson was also looking uneasy.

"Yes? What is it?" Banner said conversationally.

"…If you could see your face, the look in your eye right then, you'd know 'what,'" Falcon bluntly replied, and the scientist took a moment to visibly shove back down deep inside himself whatever had leaked into his face and voice. Not reassured, the soldier asked, "Do you really think you can make a difference? I mean, they outnumber you, and they're as strong as you."

"Maybe, but there's an important difference between them and me: they're doing this because it is their first shift, lashing out more in fear than anything. Me? I'm angry. In fact, I've never been so angry," Bruce answered, still talking in that ever so calm and quiet voice.

And then the Other Guy tore loose.

The stress and pain of the transformation made him tear up the ground with his feet, he screamed in pain and rage as his shirt and shoes were shredded as his bones and muscles grew and flexed with power until he towered over everyone.

And still he screamed.

Screamed for what had been done to him, and for what had forever been taken from him. How his own hubris had been used against him.

Screamed with fury, because his mate and child were in that city, threatened by something that was attacking his friends. The innocent. The tiny, weak innocents.

And he knew what to do about that.

 **XXX**

Office Building

A hail of gunfire tore up the walls around where her ambush of the first wave of soldiers had been.

"Black Widow!" a soldier yelled out, "This is your last warning! Surrender! Think of the baby!"

Natasha Romanoff-Banner wanted to weep as she managed distant glimpse of all of the men and woman who were flooding into the building, "Please don't do this, please don't do this," she quietly begged of the advancing soldiers too far away to hear her, knowing that they were all just patsies of Ross. Thinking that they were doing was for the best of their country, freedom, and their families.

She looked down into Laura's face. Against all expectations, the little girl is silent, as if she understood how important it is that she remains that way.

There was no choice.

There was only one course of action left to her.

Even if it was in front of her own daughter. Someone who had, until now, been unstained by the violence her mother's past. Who had not been splattered by blood or scarred by death.

The Black Widow put Laura back on her back, and let the killer inside of her loose, and stalked off to commit murder.

 **XXX**

Battlefield

"It's no good!" Iron Man desperately yelled to Captain America, the latter unable to see out of one eye because of the blood pooling into it, "There's too many of them, and they're too strong!"

Then three of the hulklings tackled Iron Man down, and the one sitting his chest brought her hands together to make a single fist and raised it up to smash it down on him, when someone caught it.

Someone big.

Someone green.

Casually blocking the blow with one hand, the figure then gave mighty kick to send the hulkling flying without even losing their balance, and then turned to the others.

 _Alright_ , the last flicker of Bruce's mind thought before fading into the background, _no more Mr. Nice Guy_.

 **XXX**

 **Author Notes:**

 **If Natasha seems a little out of character here, her feeling will be explored in greater depth in the next chapter.**

 **For those unaware,** **Einherjar warriors are the elite of Asgard's forces, and basically the ones you see fighting all the time in the movies. As a testament to their ability, they are trained by the ruler of Asgard himself.**

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 **Next Chapter: 'The Only Ones They Fear'**

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 **Please Review!**


	21. The Only Ones They Fear

For better or worse, Marvel owns all of this stuff, not me.

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Chapter 21: The Only Ones They Fear

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 _Previously: Bucky Barnes had freed himself of his Winter Soldier programming and discovered a HYDRA plot involving technology from an unknown party to create pseudo-Hulks. Believing that the creation of the Hulk was Bruce Romanoff-Banner's original intention, Bucky inadvertently revealed to the couple the truth behind the Hulk's origin. Rushing to Las Vegas, the New Avengers tried to stop the experiment, but were too late as a large part of the population were exposed to a device that caused them to transform into what were dubbed hulklings._

 _The New Avengers were nearly overwhelmed until Thor, leading the military might of Asgard intervened, with the Hulk joining the fray too._

 _Meanwhile, the Black Widow was getting her daughter to a safe place, when General Ross and USA soldiers attacked her to try and capture Bruce's child. While initially incapacitating her enemies with non-lethal means, the mother came to realize that she would have to resort to killing them._

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 _'The secret side of me/I never let you see/I keep it caged/But I can't control it  
So stay away from me/The beast is ugly  
I feel the rage/And I just can't hold it_

 _'It's scratching on the walls/In the closet, in the halls/It comes awake/And I can't control it_  
 _Hiding under the bed/In my body, in my head_  
 _Why won't somebody come and save me from this?_  
 _Make it end!_

 _'I feel it deep within,/It's just beneath the skin/I must confess that I feel like a monster_  
 _I hate what I've become/The nightmare's just begun_  
 _I must confess that I feel like a monster_  
 _I, I feel like a monster_  
 _I, I feel like a monster'_

-'Monster' by Skillet

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Battlefield of Las Vegas

The horde of hulklings shuddered as they met the implacable force that was the first of their kind. For all their savagery and numbers, they lacked His experience, His drive.

His fury.

Banner's alter ego never stayed still, always moving to hit another imitation, or to gain some advantage. His opponents were still unaccustomed to their transformation, growing used to their newfound strength and bulk as they tried to move around. The ease with which the Other Guy moved against them made Him look like a professional dancer in comparison. His speed and grace as he closed upon the hulklings were something nothing that big had any right to possess.

And he was quiet.

He was beyond growling or roaring in warning, beyond using mere sounds to express his emotions. Like a stalking cat He would come up behind hulklings and shove their heads down and through the cement.

He was mean.

A chunk of a house was thrown into one hulkling's face, filling the eyes with grains of cement, making her unable to see while He had turned to hammer fist the back skull of another facing off against three Asgardians.

He was a veteran Avenger, skilled at urban warfare against inhuman armies.

The metal pole of a Stop sign was turned into a spear rammed right into the shoulder joint of another hulkling, and before the target could yank it out, he was hauled up and used as a flail by Him to drive back two more.

One woman leapt into the air to come down at Him with a Superman Punch, yet to the shock of the watching world, her target just sidestepped the blow, grabbed her by the neck, and slammed her face into the ground hard enough to lift everyone around Him an inch into the air. Repeatedly.

Again and again the hulklings hit Him, but He only smiled as He struck back.

And soon their feral minds began to understand; ancestral memories coming to the fore.

The one before them was an Alpha.

An Apex Predator.

The Hulk.

They were the embodiments of what their inner selves felt, and those cores were just ordinary citizens who were horrified, overwhelmed by events. Self-loathing at what they had become was only overshadowed by their terror.

In contrast, Dr. Bruce Romanoff-Banner may have despised the Other Guy, who in turn usually just felt contempt for Puny Banner, yet they had an understanding on many matters. Their adventures with the Avengers had generated a small measure of mutual respect.

And right now they were both united in their hatred, their rage.

Rage!

 _Rage!_

 ** _RAGE!_**

All they could both think about was their mutual pain, the people they had hurt, all the _looks of_ **_fear that_** _**everyone ALWAYS SENT THEM!**_

Except for Nat and Laura. Others were friends and family too, but only those two mattered. And whoever was responsible for **_THIS_** was a threat to them.

This swarm of green frauds, victims, frauds, victims, frauds…green things, were getting closer to those two!

And because of that, and because of his own need to vent, Banner was no longer holding Him back.

He always had before, even when the woman with red lights did something to Them, Banner had still kept a leash on Him.

No more.

No more.

 **XXX**

Office building

Quiet murder stalked the halls.

These soldiers were not like Ross' early troops, carefully chosen for a dirty mission, but regular forces that had been ordered into this by a superior officer that they had trusted. Decent men and women who had been fed lies so that they would believe they were protecting their country.

They had friends, family, probably children of their own. There was not much difference between people like them and someone like Clint Barton.

And she had killed them.

And she did not care.

Because the Black Widow could kill without feeling anything.

This squad had been ambushed and killed by broken necks by various means: her hands, feet, or thighs.

The computer that her mind had become surveyed the corpses at her feet, and piteously tallied them amongst her list of resources.

A few minutes later, all of the bodies had been mutilated and desecrated by her knives, leaving a bloody mess that painted the walls and part of the ceiling. Footprints had been left to lead the enraged backup squad to a certain closet, and they were no longer willing to play nice with someone so sick. Not when facing "Someone who'd take trophies like that!"

They never even saw the grenade that took their lives as they rushed into the booby trapped room.

 **XXX**

Battlefield

His veins burned with a green, primordial power, driving Him forward as an indestructible that tore through everything before Him as if it were cardboard. And with Banner finally not interfering, the power of the Hulk is fully unleashed for the first time.

Every blow that rained down upon the Hulk only made Him stronger as His anger grew. Each punch He returned seemed to send out a shockwave as it connected.

He grabbed his enemies and slammed them to the ground before mercilessly beating them down.

Those who were already confused or disorientated from the Avengers or Asgardians were felled with single blows.

The fists that broke faces conveniently removed from Bruce's sight those that looked so much like the hated Other Guy, while his nemesis took satisfaction in dismissing these _imitations_.

The world watched in awe as the unstoppable being advanced, flexing with a power it barely seemed able to contain.

And then he spoke.

" **Hulk smash!** " he boomed for all to hear. And then he bared his teeth in an imitation of a smile that scared everyone across the world who were, and would, watch the broadcasted image. " **But you can take it!** "

And then he surged forward like a storm again.

 **XXX**

Office Building

Another squad died shortly afterwards.

They were more cautious this time, moving slowly towards the sound of a crying baby and soft hushing noises. The implausibility of this occurrence did not stop them from keeping someone watching their flanks, yet they still did not realize in time it was a planted recording.

The framework on the ceiling across the room from where they were travelling was obstructive enough to hide someone lying flat. After judging by their footsteps that they were in the right place, the Black Widow let go and let herself hang in the air by a cord.

Her first bullet shredded the brain of the flank man looking right at her. Before the others could turn around, headshots aimed at the slight vulnerable points in their headgear killed them all. The men to the sides were the last to fall. None had gotten a shot near her.

Six seconds had passed.

 **XXX**

Battlefield

Las Vegas was nothing but rubble as far as the eye could see, with even the skyscrapers that had been away from the fighting collapsed from thrown debris, with smoke and ash concealing what was left.

The Avengers took a moment to catch the breath and assess their situation, while Captain America confirmed that Thor was still breathing. "Easy Thor," he ordered in a soft tone, "don't move your head about," while the big man blinked his eyes. The super-soldier glanced up at the sound of another loud crash, and saw Banner, the Hulk, flying by with his legs locked around a hulkling while his fists pummeled his prey mid-flight. Landing on the ground with the hulkling still beneath him, the Hulk immediately shot up and charged forward again.

"You know," Iron Man commented over the radio with calmness that Captain America did not believe, "I'm not sure which it is."

"Pardon?"

"Is it that he's never been so angry before, or is it that he's never had anyone who can _take_ his anger? Against these hulklings, he can cut loose and show how powerful he truly is, because unlike anyone else, if they're at all like him, it shouldn't kill him. Or maybe Bruce has finally found his boiling point." Then Steve heard a sound like Tony was swallowing something, "I-I think" and now, for the first time that Steve could recall, Tony sounded scared, "I think that for the first time he's really letting it go. Even more than in Africa. That even then Bruce somehow kept the Hulk on a leash. But not now."

"…Oh." What more could be said?

 **XXX**

Mobile command post

General Ross seethed as even more men stopped reporting in. _She's killing my men like flies! And there's just one of her! Forget ideas about registering super-humans and other freaks, they should be registering people like her!_

 **XXX**

Office Building

Lieutenant Sharpe carefully led his men forward down the hall. Every room was checked, every nook and cranny. They never took their eyes off the slightest opening, and always had someone observing the ceiling.

"Lieutenant Sharpe, do you copy?" crackled his radio. Given what was happening so far, regular updates every five minutes had become necessary to keep track of which squads were still active.

"No sir. Nothing to report. Place is still quiet without a single clue. We're going to turn right and head dow—"

He paused as he felt something smack his back ankle. Spinning around he saw Sergeant Harper spasming behind him as a red demon garroted him from behind. The rest of the hallway was littered with the men she had murdered without a sound.

Before he could react, the blood drenched Black Widow drew her victim's sidearm and shot the squad leader. The owner was too weak to recover and try anything, so she finished him off with a quick neck snap. She needed to save bullets after all.

 **XXX**

Battlefield

Lady Sif, known upon Midgard as the Goddess of War, stared on in awe and horror as she beheld the beast that fought alongside her fellow warriors. Thor had spoken long and loudly of his comrades on Midgard, on Earth, of the 'Avengers.' She, and others like her, had listened with interest, and skepticism, of men whose knowledge of the universe was propelling the humans forward even faster than anticipated. Warriors whose stratagems even Thor, a commander with _centuries_ of experience leading men on the battlefield, respected. A woman whose wit had outmaneuvered _Loki_ of all people. And more. But above all they had wondered how true Thor's stories were of a meek man who could become something to make even Thor, with all of his fearsome might, struggle.

 _How could one mortal contain such power, for every single day of his life?_ she wondered in disbelief. Marveling not at the enormity of it, but the strength of the man who kept it leashed except when it was needed most. _Thor said that he hated that side of him, that he rejected the temptation it offered, preferring to live a humble life under the direction of those he could crush like_ insects _if so chose. What else have we missed about Midgard?_

Then one of the green victims tried to attack her from behind, thinking her unawares, and Sif rejoined the battle. Ducking under the fist that was bigger than her head, she slashed at the creature's hamstrings, unbalancing him for her to leap up and sever the spine just under the skull. "Einherjar!" she barked, and four of the warriors snapped forward and pinned her victim's limbs down with their blades before it regained control of them as it healed its wounds. Without breaking her stride, she marched forward, directing her soldiers as she took command in the Prince's absence.

 _Asgard is an ancient and proud culture, full of tales of valor and glory_ , Sif thought, _and this battle show now number amongst them. Despite all of my millennia, and all of my adventures, never before have I ever beheld anything like this! To be here today is an honour I shall treasure. Truly the universe is changing, and Thor is right, we must also change_. And while she might not share all of the same beliefs as the man she loved, Sif now knew that the time when these mortals should rise to the same heights as that of Asgard, was sooner than she had previously imagined.

 **XXX**

Office building

The Black Widow paused to open up another janitor's cupboard to discover a bunch of cleaning supplies. _If I can hurry back in time to get that fire extinguisher I passed…_ she calculated, blueprints to make an improvised smoke grenade running past her eyes.

The assassin's perfect memory recalled each and every person she had ever killed, and how she had done it. She also remembered everyone she had ever seen die with the same perfect attention to detail. While this could be a source of distress and guilt, right now it was providing the Black Widow with a lengthily list of suggestions on how to kill her victims.

Ten minutes later a squad was enveloped in thick smoke, and their cries led the hunter right to them.

Slipping behind one man, she snaked her arm around his neck and twisted her body to both snap his spine and use him for cover as she selected more targets to throw her silent knives at.

Running towards the sound of swearing, the assassin leapt feet first into the air and wrapped her arms around the cursing man's neck as she passed, while her legs continued forward to grip another one while still in motion. Two quick twists that used her own momentum and she had snapped snap their spines. A final contortion of her body and she landed on her feet with Laura safely on top of her back, already moving the instant she touched the ground.

When she was finally done and gone, the air was still hazy with smoke. No survivors.

 **XXX**

Battlefield

The hulklings were starting to learn now, even as the Asgardians and the Hulk drove them back. One woman ripped a car in half to make improvised knucklers, smashing several warriors back, unable to dodge around the metal hammers coming at them.

Snarling at someone stealing 'His' trick, the Hulk charged forward to teach her a lesson. Pushing off at the last moment He made a flying tackle straight between her arms before she could swing again and piledrived her down before smashing her face with His elbow. Dazed, she could not stop him from grabbing the pieces of the shredded vehicles and laying into her with them.

When He finally dropped the remaining scrap metal, He shifted as if to move on, but then paused to take in the woman before Him, and her largely unmarred flesh despite being savagely beaten unconscious, and He grinned as an idea came to Him.

By the time Falcon finally caught up to the New Avengers, the Hulk was hammering away at the hulklings while holding one of their own in each hand, wielding the gamma irradiated people as improvised flails, either trusting that their nigh-invulnerable flesh would protect them, or He just did not care what happened to them.

 **XXX**

Office Building

"Sarge, she's been here," a private called out.

"How can you tell?"

"Bathroom's been ransacked. Whoever it was tore the electric hand air dryer out, and I doubt it was one of the staff. Nothing else out of order."

"Alright, I'll call it in, maybe they know how she can weaponize it."

She could, and it knocked them unconscious before the answer came back.

Mercilessly, Black Widow finished by snapping all of their necks to make sure they did not get back up before she was done finalizing her escape.

 **XXX**

Battlefield

Unrelenting, the Hulk continued to break through the newest generation of gamma monsters.

Then he paused at a certain defiant roar.

It was clear that even before the transformation this hulkling was a giant of a man, and was now a head taller than even the Hulk, and his large and sharply defined muscles included what appeared to be distinctive tattoos despite how faded they now were, and long braided hair hanging down from his head. In each hand he held a battered Asgardian which he casually threw to the ground before charging at the bracing Hulk, punching him with the force of a runaway train.

"Banner!" Steve yelled before being knocked back by the sheer force of the impact that shook the entire area.

Looking up, he saw his fears were needless.

The Hulk was unmoved, the enemy's fist still pressed into his flesh, but the blow had not knocked him back a centimeter.

Snarling, the Hulk reached over and grabbed the hairy hulkling by the face like a vice, and hoisted him into the air.

Muffled cries echoed from the hulkling as he flailed and hammered away at the arm that was holding him up, kicking away at the Hulk's face and chest.

Unmoved, the Hulk held and squeezed until the thrashing stopped.

Then he lifted up his foot and gave a Spartan Kick to the defeated challenger, shooting him through houses and buildings, before turned to look for fresh prey, counting on the Asgardians to finish capture the defeated challenger.

 **XXX**

Outside of the mobile command center

Ross was striding towards his awaiting helicopter, reeling out orders as he struggled to contain the situation. "That's right, _every_ soldier from the perimeter! Fill up the entire building, and have them all move as one so that everyone has eyes on each other! Have them sweep through like a wave through every room of that building! But they have to move cautiously in case of traps!" A little nervous, Ross' aid was right behind him.

One woman, just one woman, had incapacitated an elite Black-Ops team, and had then killed all of the soldiers that Ross had sent in there. While carrying around a baby.

Behind him, all of the newest soldiers started to advance in, a veritable army that had the entire office building surrounded and contained, and their target trapped.

The general climbed into the passenger seat behind the pilot's chair, rubbing his forehead in frustration at the nightmare before him. Glancing out of the window he could see all of the ongoing destruction throughout a proud America city. "This is the beginning of the end," he muttered. "No turning back after this, and we'll be at war with the Avengers now. Have to be. Can't let something like this slide, or they'll do it again."

He was pulled out of his dark thoughts, as the helicopter started to lift off. Making an abbreviated gesture at his aid, the man leaned forward to tell the pilot to stop since there was a few more officers they wanted to take with them too.

A gun barrel thrust him right back into his seat as the Black Widow leaned out of the pilot's chair, "Give me a full rundown on the situation," she flatly ordered.

Nothing human was looking back at them through those eyes.

The young man was too terrified to not tell her everything. Including what the military was not doing to help. Fortunately, the Black Widow had a plan. She always had a plan.

Her gear had been shorted out by the EMP, but with what she had left over after fixing some of her weapons, had scavenged from the office building, and what she had stripped off of the soldiers, she had been able to get one last bit of Stark's equipment working.

Ross had been talking on the radio enough for her to get a voice simulation of the general prepared, one that would fool every analyzer, even SHIELD's. Picking up the mike, she spent a minute reworking it so that not only would all the soldiers hear it, but also anyone else in the region with a radio. The Black Widow's tertiary mission objective, after saving Laura and then her own life, was preserving the Avenger's reputation, and making sure that this fiasco did not galvanize the Superhuman Registration Act into being implemented overnight. Preparing herself, the assassin addressed the world:

"This is General Ross!" she barked in a perfect, electronic replication of the man's voice. "All soldiers advance forward and support the Avengers and Asgardians! They are fulfilling _our_ responsibility, so we must show them they aren't actually alone! Take tactical field orders from Captain America and the other Avengers!"

The higher ups would doubtlessly be asking for her to confirm her identity, and others would recognize that Ross probably would not talk like that, but they were not her audience. Believing they had legitimate orders to do what they had been itching to do, the US military charged in to give support in defending their own native soil. Given how she had broadcasted those orders, many civilians, and especially the media, would also have listened in. Hopefully, it would give the impression of the government working alongside the Avengers to take down super-threats, with the Avengers taking the lead. Hopefully it would help stem the consequences of whatever had happened here.

What few remained of the hulklings tried to fight back, yet the distraction the soldiers and aircraft provided was the final thing the Avengers needed to end it all.

The government might try to later state that the orders were illegitimate, yet Natasha figured they would not want the resulting political backlash.

As for herself, the Black Widow had two prisoners to take care of.

 **XXX**

Battlefield

The last of city's inhabitants had gathered in one place, smashing through what little remained of the houses as they tried to gather together, still dozens strong, yet the fight had gone out of them.

In growing numbers the defiant bellows of the hulklings were overwhelmed by the inhuman roars of the jade juggernaut, and they began to stop moving, or even just sat down.

It was not only submission to someone they recognized as the strongest, but the realization that this being before them might save them. A distant part of them knew what they had become, and they recognized who was before them. Their fear was greater than their anger, and a part of the wild minds that was still in control knew they needed someone to help them.

The Hulk was their elder, stronger, more in control. He knew what they were enduring. Who else could they really turn to?

And He knew it. The Hulk paused as he saw how passive they had become, and He knew He should stop. They were victims, just like Him.

"It's alright, Hulk," a sound said, and He turned his head to see a man dressed in blue, red, and white run up. He knew this puny human, knew that Banner trusted him. Banner was weak, but knew that this human would help keep safe not only Banner, but also Banner's mate, the one with crimson hair and a beautiful voice and an unbreakable heart, and Banner's child, That-Which-Must-Be-Protected. "It's alright," the puny human was still saying, and he was more recognizable now that Hulk could see his metal circle. "These are the last of them," the blue, red, and white human said. Nodding, Hulk turned back towards the copies.

" **Stay** ," rumbled a voice that promised pain beyond measure if they ignored their better. Then without another sound, He turned and leapt into the air back towards where Banner's mate and child were. He did not look back, because He knew that He would be obeyed.

 **XXX**

A few minutes later

"—and don't be afraid to ask some of the Asgardians for help moving the rubble," Steve Rogers finished as he addressed the present army field officers. "They'll want to do what they can, especially if people might be trapped underneath."  
"Sir, yes sir!" they all cried out, throwing him crisp salutes and dispersed to carry out their assignments.

"How's it going?" Tony asked, as she stood watch over the compliant hulklings, having shed his Hulkbuster armour for his sleeker personal version, yet even that one showed serious signs of damage. Despite this, he was still a defiant figure, holding up the palm of one hand as he aimed a repulsor at them.

"Pretty good," Steve said with a small smile as he limped up to his friend. "How about you, you can take a breather now if you want."

"Yeah, about that," Tony replied in an annoyed tone. "My suits out of power and a few things just blew. It's frozen like this, pointing at them. Even the emergency manual relief got broken in all pounding." Moving faster, Steve pulled up in front of the billionaire who quickly started making hushing noises. "No, no, don't look concerned, it'll ruin the cool image. I was going to wait until everyone but the Avengers were gone before asking for a crowbar even."

Opening his mouth to continue the joke, Steve broke off as he caught something from the corner of his eye.

"What? What is it?" Tony asked, evidently able to still see a little bit from slits in his facemask. "Wait. Oh. Ooh."

The hulklings were suddenly writhing on the ground, rolling about and clutching their heads as their faces contorted into silent screams. Then they froze in shock, and then flailed about even more, knocking their Asgardian captors about, but both Tony and Steve quickly noted how it was with far, far less force than before. In half-a-minute, where the hulklings had been were now only ordinary citizens. Half-naked and unconscious, but apparently unharmed.

Sam Wilson was the first to move forward, barking orders and asking for the status of the other hulklings, even as similar reports flooded the radio channels.

"Thoughts?" Steve calmly asked.

"Burned out somehow?" Tony offered speculatively. "They can't handle it like Brucey can? But it was advertised for HYDRA as being permanent. Skip it, use your shield and pry me out of here, my phone has enough stuff to get me started figuring this out, and some ancient being here can probably help. Oh, what's that face? What now?" he asked as he caught the newest look on Steve's face as he looked over Tony's shoulder.

"Don't know. Give me a minute," and Steve strode away from his immobilized friend to meet the man he recognized as Lieutenant General Ross approaching him. The man seemed a little stiff, and was definitely out of place as the Asgardians finished securing the civilians who had been forced into this mess. What followed next was even more surprising.

The older man, biologically, walked up to Captain America, in front of all of the soldiers, aliens, and cameras, and extended his hand. Steve accepted the handshake and reciprocated it, despite his suspicion over the presence of his friend's mortal enemy, and then he fully took in the look on the general's face; Ross maintained his cheerful smile, but his eyes were ablaze with hatred and fear. "Please stop her," he whispered, "she's threatened to kill all my men."

Instantly catching on, Steve put on his biggest smile that he learned from when he was a dancing monkey raising war bonds, and saluted the man. Ross hesitated a moment, before returning it, the sharp movement showing the radio in his ear. "Well then, General," Steve softly said, "I guess you'd better let Falcon take you back to the Quinjet. I'm sure we'll be thrilled to hear why Romanoff's threatening you."

Ross' only response was the slightest flinch.

 **XXX**

Outside the office building

Helicopter

The Black Widow carried the sleeping Bruce into the helicopter, and buckled safely buckled him in beside the bound and gagged aid. The Hulk had reached her just a minute ago, standing atop the nearest building, staring at her as the Other Guy drank in her appearance: bloodied by the men who had threatened her child. He had given a nod, and then without any prompting shifted back into her husband for her to land and pick up.

Picking up a pair of binoculars, the assassin took in the sight of Falcon discreetly escorting General Ross away from the liberated citizens. "Romanoff, you okay?" her leader's voice then asked from her radio, now that she had disabled the jammer

"Yes," she flatly answered. "I'll take my passengers to the Quinjet Bruce arrived in and meet you back at base."

The pause was subtle, but she still heard it before Captain America answered with a simple "Roger." The Black Widow then glanced out the window to confirm that her other order's using Ross' voice had been obeyed. Careful revisions even as the general had headed towards his helicopter, had hopefully kept any of the newer soldiers from finding the corpses of any of her victims, which would help contain any rumors of what exactly had happened within that building. Now all of them were falling back to help finish securing what was left of Vegas, oblivious to what had actually happened inside of the office building.

Ross had nearly had his fill of slaughter, and the threat of using the aircraft's enhanced missiles for anti-Hulk work on his surviving soldiers had made the man compliant. Speaking of which…

A brush with a finger, and she launched all of the missiles to annihilate the empty building, consuming any evidence of dead American heroes.

Now she could go home with the only remaining witnesses to what had really happened here.

And with that, her calm façade broke.

Unseen by the world, tears silently fell from Natasha's eyes.

Natasha Romanoff-Banner had thought she was wiping her bloody ledger clean, bit by bit, but now she made things worse. While she did not regret the steps she had been forced to take to save her daughter, those had been good men she had killed, who however misguided only wished to help protect their country and families.

The monster had gotten loose again.

Even worse, or perhaps for the best, she knew she would do it again if she had to.

And beside her, for the first time in all of this chaos, Laura started to cry and wail in turn.

 **XXX**

Unknown Location

"…Well, that was interesting."

"Unfortunately, the process is flawed, as expected. Rapid and wide dispersal is too weak to last indefinitely, and these versions were weaker than the original. Still, it did provide a lot of useful data for me too look over. And _yes_ , I remembered to destroy the recorders this time, so you don't have to go out and clean up my mess. Although I admit it was a bit close, we nearly lost the New Avengers." The sound of a deep breath being taken, and then the speaker continues in a relieved voice, "And we should be back on track now."

There is a clinking sound, and the sound of liquid pouring from a bottle into some container.

"Here," the first talker says.

"Thanks. So, what did you think of that promise. The one Dr. Banner made on TV?"

"Are you asking in terms of what the likely public reaction will be, or what I think of it regarding his threat to ourselves? And me specifically?"

"Well..."

"Heh, I think it will make things interesting when we meet. Still, he'll understand why we did it."

"Actually, I was more concerned that he knew beforehand that both projects were linked. That the initial project that altered him was deliberate."

"Oh. Ohhh."

"Yes. So the question is: what else do they know?"

 **XXX**

 **Author Notes:**

 **The bathroom hand dryer machine is a reference to one scene from Agents of SHIELD where Fitz somehow takes out to trained SHIELD agents with one; off-screen unfortunately.**

 **-0-**

 **Next Chapter: "Fallout"**

 **-0-**

 **Please Review!**


	22. Fallout

For better or worse, Marvel owns all of this stuff, not me.

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Chapter 22: Fallout

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 _Previously: Coulson and SHIELD have come increasingly closer to unveiling the mysterious organization that they have nicknamed the Appendix, which has been manipulating the world and the development of the Avengers with disturbing ease. SHIELD has also taken note of how the secretive organization not only created the Hulk, but also eliminated almost of all other potential experts on him. At the same time, Tony and Steve had reconciled and were planning on working together to find a compromise against Registration._

 _Unfortunately, while the Appendix was unaware of how much SHIELD knew, they felt pressured by the Comet landing to accelerate their timetable and turned thousands of people in Las Vegas into pseudo-Hulks, called 'hulklings.' The Avengers were nearly overwhelmed until Thor came to their aid with assistance of the Asgardian military, yet even then the hulklings nearly routed the Asgardians, with Thor being badly injured. The battle finally ended with the arrival of Bruce Romanoff-Banner turning the tide when he unleashed the full power of the Hulk for the first time ever. Unfortunately, Director Coulson of SHIELD discovered that the entire battle had been broadcasted globally._

 _At the same time that this was happening, General Ross attacked Natasha and her daughter, with the intent of using the baby as leverage again Bruce. Natasha fought back, and despite her significant distress at doing so, killed many American soldiers to protect her child before escaping and ensuring Ross' capture._

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 _"I do know that. I know that change is difficult, and comes slowly, and that it is the work of many days strung together in a long line until the origin is forgotten. He is afraid that he will not be able to put in that work, that he will squander those days, and that they will leave him worse off than he is now. And I understand that feeling –I understand being afraid of yourself._ "

–Tobias, "Allegiant" by Veronica Roth

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 _"That's because being a monster is easy. Doing good, making a positive difference: that's hard_."

-Emperor Krosp ("Girl Genius: Agatha H. and the Airship City" by Phil and Kaj Foglio)

-0-

Las Vegas

A short while later

"Wow, really?"

"Yes, Captain America," Lady Sif gravely answered. "You lack the context to truly understand the significance, but Heimdal's inability to see what exactly happened when this child arrived was a serious concern for Asgard. Further investigations were equally unrevealing, but did lead to the same discoveries about the Hulk as you."

Steve nodded in understanding, "And that's how you learned that we'd need a hand. You have our sincere thanks."

Sif gave a quick bow of her head, "It is the duty of Asgard to protect the Nine Realms. In truth, your own efforts before our arrival were most impressive. It is good to see that Thor did not exaggerate on the skills of his companions here." Then she beamed a smile, "And now we must celebrate!"

"And what about the people?" Tony called out. "Shouldn't we check them out first?" War Machine's confusion, even though he was still in his armour, was evident at how his best friend was passing up the opportunity to party.

Instead of answering, Sif gave a knowing look up at the sky, and in a flash the Bifrost activated again, bringing down several women with ornate cases in their hands. "They shall confirm the condition of your people," Sif calmly said.

"So they'll be able to tell us if they're in danger of becoming hulklings again?" Steve quietly asked.

Sif looked back at the super-soldier, but then saw the intense look in his eyes, and paused for a moment in thought. "There is another world in the Nine Realms, empty of life. It is called: Svartalfheim." Steve blinked at the ease at which she said the word, but made no sound, so Sif continued, "If they are truly in danger of becoming the monsters again, we could send them there. Prolonged exposure would be hazardous to them, but I am confident that we could devise a more appropriate arrangement in the meantime while our scientists dedicate themselves to curing them."

"So, you could do the same for Banner," a stone-faced Tony suggested as he walked over.

Steve caught the slightest twitch in Sif's face, "You already know you can't cure him," Steve said as the truth dawned on him. "That's the why you were so concerned about the Hulk, because you didn't understand how it worked for Banner or why he was so strong, but because he was a friend of Thor's you had to leave him alone."

"I only recently learned of this," Sif firmly told them. "And it is our hope that this different method may be reversible."

Tony just turned and walked back towards the Asgardian scientists – _If that's the proper term,_ Steve mused – who were holding up various items towards some volunteers from the Vegas citizens, with a few of the devices projecting ghostly holograms of the people being examined. After a few more minutes of silent watching, one of the Asgardians walked up to Sif. "We can find no signs of the monsters within them," the stern lady said. "It is as if it has been burned out of their very bodies."

"That's what I said," Tony offered in a helpful voice. Steve threw his friend a quick searching look. Tony's playful personality had faded once the situation had started to stabilize and the hulklings had depowered, particularly after Sif had come over to talk to them.

The other Asgardian just ignored him though, and Sif asked, "So the process is indeed different than what created the original Hulk?" The older women flinched at this and shot Sif an accusing glare for revealing that secret, but wilted when Sif did the same, yet with far more power. "Yes," she reluctantly answered. "The processes were fundamentally different. Our readings indicate that the reason that it is permanent for the Banner is because it was deliberately calibrated for his specific DNA. This process was far cruder in order to alter so many different humans, and was ultimately rejected by the victims, especially since the very transformation vastly augmented their immune systems, enhancing their ability to do so."  
"So this was never intended to be permanent in the first place," Steve surmised. The Asgardian scientist gave no answer until Sif glowered at her again, making the uncooperative woman give a sharp nod of affirmation, and then walked off.

"My apologies," Sif said, not waiting until her countrywoman was out of earshot, "our people are unused to dealing with those of Midgard. And for those of whom who do have past experience, it is mostly from centuries ago. They don't appreciate how far you've come since then."

 _But not you I believe_ , Steve thought, wondering if Sif had been on Earth on other occasions besides finding Thor in New Mexico during Earth's first encounter with Asgardians. _At the very least she is more sensitive and diplomatic than the others, which is ironic since I remember from Norse Mythology that she is supposed to be the Goddess of War_. Giving a heartfelt smile that made it clear there were no concerns, Steve politely changed the topic: "I've some experience with being away from a world for long periods of time, and that was only for decades. I can't imagine how it would be to accept centuries of change without some impressions of the past influencing you." Sif raised her eyebrow at that, and Steve finished the transition, "And thanks again for saving us back there. You people've really got some fantastic moves."

Sif bared her teeth in a smile that was somehow unthreatening, happy to discuss a familiar topic, when the Bifrost landed again, and another warrior stepped out. "Lady Sif!" he called out. "King Odin orders that our men return immediately!"

Sif immediately turned away to begin barking out orders as her sense of responsibility took over, even as she wondered at the uncharacteristic haste of their highness. Captain America followed behind to make sure that everything was okay, while Tony said he was heading back, and walked towards the nearest Quinjet, making a point of greeting the soldiers along the way, deflecting any questions about why he did not just fly out with his suit of armour, which Rhodey was discreetly stashing away.

 **XXX**

New Avengers Facility

"—and then I took us back here," Natasha finished.

Soundlessly Bruce got up from where he had been listening, walked out of the room, and came back a moment later with a wet cloth, and started to gently wash her face, waiting for her to finally raise her eyes to meet his directly. When he was done wiping away the dried tears and blood, he turned his attention to her hands, patiently waiting for her to realize that he was not upset with her. In her past life, words and the lies they contained had been her constant companion, and she knew how good an actor his life as a fugitive had made him, so he chose to communicate through his actions. She would easily see through what he was doing of course, but it would help engage her mind and open up so that she could truly see that he still loved her.

The hug was sharp and sudden, pulling him in towards her like a vice, and he returned the gesture, _willing_ his feeling for Natasha to flow over to her. His acceptance of what she had done, his grief at the necessity at it, and that he held no anger and no condemnation for her.

"If it had been anyone else there, they'd have taken Laura, and you know what I'd have done. I wouldn't have been able to stop Him, I wouldn't have _wanted_ to stop Him."

She pulled back to look him in the face, "No Bruce, you're better than—"

He cut her off, "No, that's not true. Today, wasn't me coming to Vegas to save the day. It was me so full of rage that I couldn't handle it anymore, no matter what I did, and I knew that I had to let it out. I _wanted_ to let it out, I didn't want to use tranquilizers or anything else, I just wanted to smash. That they were gamma monsters like me just made it easier to rationalize."

"No Bruce!" Natasha snapped again. "After everything you'd just gone through, no one can blame you—" she cut herself off and glared at him, but he could tell that there was no real heat behind it. "I really am messed up aren't I, if you can play me like that? You chose to get into that gamma machine despite it not being tested, but you also chose to go to Vegas. Just like I chose to fight, because the consequences of _not_ fighting were too high." She grimaced and re-evaluated, "I'm just upset because I'm worried that I might have to do it again when Laura's old enough to _know_ what I'm doing in front of her."

"And me when she learns what her daddy turns into," her husband agreed. "But we can't stop now. We've got to keep on working at it, working to make this world a better place for Laura. One that she can be proud of, and proud of us."

The life finished returning to Natasha's face, her eyes losing the last flickers of self-doubt and regaining the strength that he had fallen in love with.

The woman who knew that her past was full of red blood, but now never stopped walking forward as she sought to redeem herself by creating a world where if she could not make it free of such violence, she would at least protect all the innocents she could from it. That when her end finally came, that she would die knowing she had made a positive difference. And now she had sworn to die knowing that her example for her daughter, for Lila, Cooper, and Nathaniel would be one of a hero, someone to inspire them, and not as an assassin. She had failed to live up to that promise today in saving her daughter, but there was always tomorrow.

She leaned forward to give him a quick peck on the lips. "I know how to choose them don't I?"  
"I know better than to argue with you," he said with a smile.

Then she got serious again, "I think we know now where Laura came from though."

Bruce paused in thought, and then grimly nodded. "Whoever did this to me must've kept a sample of my DNA, and made Laura as a way to bait us into going after them, maybe even make us vulnerable."  
"The fools," Natasha agreed. "We'll have to remember to thank them. Once they're no longer a threat to our daughter at least."

"Yes," Bruce agreed. "You should get some rest though. I slept on the way over after all."

Natasha nodded, and hand-in-hand they went to the bedroom where she got some sleep while curled up against him, while he let his mind wander as he sorted through all the implications of the day. _It's going to be hard going from here on out, especially if Nat's improvised cover-up doesn't fool the government and they come after her. Worst case scenario we can leave Laura at the Barton's. And if we're on the run it'll be harder to hunt down who's responsible for all this. We'll have to see what happens next of course, but this has probably pushed us even further towards the Sokovian Accords and everything Nat and I've been trying to prevent_.

 **XXX**

Later

"How's it looking?" Steve asked as he returned to base.

"Could be better," SHIELD Agent Maria Hill admitted, having just beaten the man back from her secret meeting with Director Coulson and the rest of the SHEILD's leadership. "Banner and Romanoff have been in their room, and she requested that the path from the Quinjet be cleared of people for them," she finished in foreboding tone.  
Steve sighed, "What happened in Vegas exactly?"

"General Ross, yes, that Ross. From what we've gathered so far he made an attack on Romanoff to grab Laura as a hostage. First he sent in a Black Ops group, but when she took them down, nonlethally, he then sent in troops that were supposed to be helping at Vegas."

Face tightening in dread, "And she was forced to start killing them," Captain America concluded, stating a fact, not a question.

Hill knew that keeping a mask on would alienate the man, and was too upset herself to even bother, "Yes," she sighed, visibly upset. "It'll take a lot of work, but we can cover it up. But the fact remains we're on very shaky ground with the government right now, and we've still got to find out who knows what's going on. Romanoff destroyed enough of the evidence that no one can prove what happened, but enough people will still know. As for Romanoff herself…" she trailed off, and the senior agent could only shrug in helplessness. "Just hope that Banner can help her."

Relieved that Hill was showing concern for all of this, proof that SHIELD was improving, Steve nodded in agreement before heading off to check on his other teammates, trusting that Bruce could help Natasha at this emotional point, and knowing that if he interfered it might blow everything up.

 _She especially won't want to see me right away since those weren't just good men, but also American soldiers like me_ ," he knew. " _But I don't hold her guilty for that, protecting her daughter. If anyone's at fault, it's Ross for deliberately trying to provoke a conflict and digging into our personal lives like that._

 **XXX**

Later

"Natasha," Steve said with relief when she and Bruce came to join the New Avengers in the briefing room, "I'm—I'm sorry we couldn't be there for you. But—"

"You couldn't have done anything even if you'd known," Natasha reassured him, hiding her heartfelt relief that it seemed like Steve, her moral compass after Bruce, accepted what she had been forced to do. She gave a quick look around and saw that only Vision was present, which made sense since the synthoid did not get tired, and Steve had his blasted enhanced biology. The rest had probably collapsed in their rooms from exhaustion. "Thor not here?"

"He got pretty beaten up by one of the hulklings, that's what we're calling them, but was doing okay. He was still a little out of it, but none of his friends seemed concerned. They all got recalled back to Asgard though. And you, Bruce," Steve added as he looked at the man, "were the one who got the guy who hurt him."

"Indeed," Vision added, "although I don't know why you're looking so embarrassed Dr. Banner, you're little speech at the beginning has already gained a lot of attention."

"Speech?" Natasha asked questioningly, seeing the dawning look of horror on Bruce's face as he recalled what he had said to all of those cameras, while Vision brought up a recording of it on the wall screen, including Bruce's death threat before his dramatic releasing of the Hulk.

Rubbing his forehead in frustration, Bruce knew he had badly messed up. Going Hulk like that could be seen as justified and necessary, if regrettable, but his little speech to those cameras – _Did I really say that?_ he wondered despairingly – was another story, showing the darker side of both him and the Avengers, opening them all up to a new round of paranoid speculation and public fears. _I'm always controlling my anger to keep the Other Guy in, but this time I made things worse all on my own! I let what happened get to me, of all the times I could lose it, it just_ had _to be today._

"Well," Natasha said after a moment, "it looks like you've been around Stark too long. In fact, based upon the Youtube view count here, it's been watched almost as many times as the last time he got drunk and naked. Although I'm glad you're only half-naked here. Staking my claim would be even harder otherwise."

Steve shot her a look, "Too soon Natasha."

"Alright then," she said flatly. "The Hulk, who SHIELD just managed to get the warrants for arrest dropped, the Hulk mind you, not Bruce, but they'd lock him up anyways, has been shown to have been with the Avengers the entire time. We could try and deny it, but given the Quinjet in the video and the casual way he talked with Sam, I doubt it'll fly. Bruce then went on to promise to kill someone in cold blood, to the entire world. All of which ruins our plans to publicly return Bruce to the fold, after he comes out of hiding in some third-world country of course, to retake the spotlight as a hero at a more discrete time. So the question then is, what are the reactions to him fighting in Las Vegas?"

Steve fixed her with an inscrutable look for a moment, and then pulled up more video feeds, "Opinion are mixed," he simply said as he showed the Hulk fighting his way through Las Vegas.

Bruce could only stare in horror at the television screen, as he watched the Hulk take down his copies. People might see it as an act of heroism, yet he knew what it really was: a display of power and unchecked anger that would only sow the seeds of greater fear, and push forward the tensions that could consume the world. And he knew that others would see the truth as well. But then he felt Natasha's fingers intertwine with his own, and squeeze as she lent her own strength and supported to him.

He sighed, "Alright, I guess that secret's out. I'm not going to go public about it, but I won't hide myself away. If anything," and here Bruce stiffed his spine and squared his shoulders, and Steve raised an eyebrow as the normally meek scientist suddenly seemed taller and far more confident. Like a man who had once thrown his sweat and blood into improving the world until a lab accident had ruined everything. And now that he knew the truth—? Steve shot Natasha a quick glance. _Is this what you see in him all the time? That none of the rest of us except maybe Tony did?_ Yet the super-soldier was also concerned, because he could tell from the light in the eyes of both parents that they were going to war. _The only question is: how far will they go? And against whom?_

"Are all the citizens okay?" Bruce asked, the mild question contrasting with his transformation.

"Yes," Steve reassured. "Except for all the damage, it's almost like nothing even happened. Even the victims only have very vague memories of what they experienced. We could use some advice on that."

"I've got some stuff to take care of first, but I'll have it for you this evening. Any problems with the military?"

"None at all," Vision answered, deciding that a prompt response would prevent the situation derailing over Black Widow's actions. "We've received public apologies for the delay in their support, and it appears Ross will be receiving the fall for failing to help us sooner. The fact that they told us he would be assigned as our liaison for the foreseeable future, despite the fact that he is also being investigated for negligent orders during the battle, means that his power base has been severely damaged."

Natasha's throat hitched, "So no one knows what really happened?"

"The cover-up for what Ross did is going well," Steve reassured her, failing to notice the slight tension in her frame. The realization that people would help bury the evidence of all the men and woman she had just killed, as if they were trying to just forget about them, about, all to keep her from being charged for her crimes and deny them access to her special skills, made Natasha's guilt rise up in her again, making her feel sick. In a very real sense she felt herself wishing that she would be hunted instead. But then Bruce squeezed her hand, mimicking her own earlier gesture, and she relaxed. _That may be what SHIELD's doing, but Steve's saying that as a friend. Like the rest of the Avengers. And I can't do anything to help the world, help Laura, from a jail cell. It might be another case of 'the end justifies the means,' but I won't ever forget their faces. They'll always be there, driving me forward, making sure that I uphold my oath of building a better future_.

"Good to hear," Bruce said. "Mind if I talk to him later?"

"If you're sure," Steve said with concern.

"Are you sure you'll feel comfortable with that, Bruce?" Vision elaborated. "By all accounts, even when you were working for him your relationship was strained."

"Just something I feel I have to do," Bruce finished with a shrug. "One last conversation between the two of us." He paused, his inner scientist at railing against such an emotional and unfounded decision, "Don't know why, but I just feel it."

 **XXX**

New Avengers Facility

Outside the Interrogation Room

Later

"The General's assistant sang like a bird," the SHIELD agent reassured Bruce, handing him a tablet with a copy of the interrogation. "Ross compartmentalized it to help keep it a secret from SHIELD, so almost no one in the military knows about your daughter. We've rounded up the ones who broke our com encryption, but a few senior military officers also know. We'll have to get back to you about them though." The scientist nodded in relief. It would be best for Natasha to examine the recording, but he was confident that SHIELD was above board on this, and hopefully this entire nightmare could be cleared up as soon as possible. But there was still one more matter to attend to.

He took a moment to take a deep breath before going in to see Ross. Everyone knew him for his anger, or for how passive he could be. And right now he had every reason to be angry. It took all of his self-control to shelve his anger for the moment, yet Bruce put a beaming smile on his face and went in to see General Ross. The man's military training gave him great self-control, but Bruce had been a fugitive too long to not miss the slightest twitch to reassure him that his expression was a little unnerving. Slowly and steadily he walked in, drawing out the moment and the tension, pulled out the chair across the table from a handcuffed Ross, and sat down, settling his arms down on the surface and interlacing his fingers.

"You know, I always felt that what went on between us two was, well, professional. You were hunting me because of what you felt was best for the world, and I ran because that is what I thought was for the best, but that it was always just between the two us, with maybe even a little bit of mutual respect. We didn't like each other, yet we believed in some limits. Some might say you went over the line today. By the way, how's Betty?"

The glare Ross shot at his hated enemy carried with it all the authority, dignity, and resolve from a lifetime of dedication towards his country. He only wished that he himself could become a Hulk to crush Banner's worthless head between his fingers. Instead, he just sneered, "Lookit you. Lording it around with your Avenger friends while you do whatever you want. I always knew you were weak like that."

The small smile he received was especially infuriating. "All I ever wanted, general, was to help people. And yet men who keep thinking in terms of weapons keep seeming to interfere with that."

Ross snorted in derision, "Like that assassin you've hooked up with? What, you get a dirty pleasure being with a bad girl like that?" he sardonically sneered. "Always knew you were stupid, Banner, but now I know you're a hypocrite too."

Bruce fought down the urge to parry by pointing out the general was the one insulting a rage monster, but knew that would be seen as petty. "Says the man who tries to kill babies, but for the greater good of course," he said instead, while knowing that there was really more to Ross' plan.

"I wasn't going to kill her!" Ross snapped, "Who do you think I am!? I was just going use the girl to get you to finally do what you're supposed to do!"

"Being a weapon? Attacking whoever you see fit? Given what I've seen of your performance today only validated my decision to run. You'd have invited nothing but a downward spiral of bloodshed and misery."

"Like you can talk," the general spat, "do you know what that [censored] did!? How many men she killed back there!?"

"Yes," Bruce calmly answered, Natasha had even told him the exact number.

Now the man felt in control again, "And do you realize what'll happen when that gets out? Your New Avengers are finished! That was nothing less than a terrorist attack on the US! Unless—"

"No," Bruce interrupted. "I won't help you make a world like that for my child to grow up in. Plus, I believe you're mistaken. Those soldiers were regrettable casualties of the hulklings, that's what we're calling the Vegas victims, when you bungled everything by holding them back out of fear. It wasn't until they'd been killed did you realize your error and commit to helping the Avengers. And of course, out of shame, you've volunteered to be the new liaison with the New Avengers to avoid such mistakes in future, with your assignment here being indefinite."

He resisted the urge to say anything more to his ashen faced nemesis.

"So that's it then, that's the type of man you've become, eh, Banner."

No reaction, not a skip of the heartbeat, "I've become a family man, and you put my child in the crosshairs. And with everything that's happened, well…" Bruce shrugged, "I don't know what metaphor to use, but it's clear that the future is looking pretty grim if we don't get it right. But don't worry, SHIELD will keep you safe."

He got up to leave, "Banner."

Bruce looked back at Ross, "Whatever else," the man growled, "don't ever think I'd hurt a kid. But right now, I wonder how far you and your girl will go." He held that gaze for another moment, and then left, struggling not to leave any faster.

 **XXX**

"Understood, got it," and once she heard the person on the other end of the phone hang up, Maria Hill did the same. She also suppressed the urge to go get a drink.

"Who was that?" a voice asked, and she glanced up to see Falcon walking over, and she knew that for the counselor she was probably giving off enough cues to figure out something was wrong. Moreover, the fact that _she_ was giving off any visible cues told Hill how rattled she was.

"We were played," was the blunt answer. "That was some other people with SHIELD, and they did the math. The hulklings would've burned out before reaching another city, so there was never any real threat to the rest of the country. We could've just pulled everyone back and it would've been over without a fight. That was another other reason that they chose Vegas. The Avengers fighting, Asgard joining in, that was all just icing on the cake if they wanted to show everyone how dangerous the world really is."

"Oh…"

"Fortunately the final HYDRA cell was taken care of, and we don't think that they told the rest of the organization anything, but we didn't get anything out of it. SHIELD agents are going over everything with a fine tipped comb, but we're not optimistic. Same with the prisoners taken from the first cell, we've got our best interrogators on them, but we're not learning anything new so far."

 **XXX**

New Avengers Facility

Lounge

Tony slammed another empty bottle of alcohol down on top of the bar, trying to drown out the images in his mind.

 _A giant green woman wrestling with him, snapping her teeth right in front of his faceplate as she tried to bite his head off._

He grabbed another bottle.

 _Thor controlling the weather, tearing apart what was left of the city, while monsters which had torn apart Tony's greatest inventions were flung around like ragdolls._

His left hand twitched unconsciously.

 _A women wearing metal armour that even Capsicle would probably have trouble running in, just casually summersaulting over a massive fist._

"Boss," a voice said in his ear, making him flinch. "You've reached the alcohol safety limits that Miss Pepper Potts specified." Tony hesitated, but knew that FRIDAY would call his girlfriend if he continued. Traitor.

The inventor took a deep breath, and another, and got up from the bar. He fished around in a pocket and pulled out a little pill he had made that would both hide the smell of alcohol on his breath and help detoxify him. Truthfully, he had made them years ago after a particularly close call during his irresponsible years, but had rarely bothered using them. For right now though, he knew he needed his wits about him more than ever.

 **XXX**

Cleveland, Ohio

Idly sitting in his hotel room, an innocuous cell phone resting upon a book with a red cover beside him, Helmut Zemo calmly re-watched the footage on his laptop. Every detail was absorbed and catalogued by the former Sokovian Special Forces colonel as he plotted.

"But where is the Black Widow? And where did the Hulk go afterwards?" he mused aloud. "What are they hiding?"

Taking a break, he booted up some computer programs and prepared to decrypt some more of SHIELD's former files, chasing down more facts while his subconscious processed what he had just seen.

 **XXX**

The Playground

(SHIELD Director Coulson's personal headquarters)

"Coulson."

"Yes, May?"

"Brigadier General Talbot is trying to reach you."

The SHIELD Director put down the document he was reading at that, knowing that the US general only ever called when he had bad news and knew that the military itself was incapable of handling the problem. Hopefully it was not to ask about General Ross; it would put a crimp in Coulson's working relationship with the US if they found out SHIELD was holding an army general in custody, and was planning to keep him there indefinitely.

"Put him through."

"Coulson," the mustached man greeted once he was up on the comm screen, "What can you tell me about Captain Emil Blonsky?"

"Hello to you to," Coulson said instead, using that brief sarcasm to briefly contemplate the question before answering. "He was an extremely skilled Royal Marine, who through various measures became enhanced enough to give the Hulk a tough fight, being able to actually hurt him if not nearly beat him. When the Avengers Initiative was in its early stages, he was rejected as a candidate by SHIELD due to his power-hungry and violent nature. He was transferred to SHIELD custody and locked in a cryocell facility in Alaska, which is now under US military control. Dare I ask why you're so curious?"

"He's not there anymore."

"Sorry—?"

Taking a breath, Talbot continued, "Some important senators thought we needed to fight fire with fire, and gave instructions that Blonsky was to be released as potential deterrent against another Hulk outbreak—."

"Are they insane!?" Coulson snapped, horrified at the ramifications of the man nicknamed 'the Abomination' on the loose.

"Except he already wasn't there when they went to thaw him out," Talbot finished.

"…What!?"

"What they found was a mannequin behind frosted glass and falsified computer readouts and some other stuff." Talbot paused to do something off-screen, "I've just sent you the full details of what we have so far, but in short Blonsky's been missing for who knows how long. Now I got my hands on a copy of your psych profiles on the man from when we were hunting you guys, and even asked around about him, from both before and after his change, and I have to agree with your concerns. And I know you wouldn't have anything to do with this since you wouldn't take such a risk even just transporting him, so I'm asking you, what will HYDRA do with him? I can't work in the dark with something this big Coulson, not now."

"I don't know, but I'll call you back," Coulson said shortly, disconnecting the call, while a horrible sensation went through him. _We suspect the Appendix took care of Sterns, the foremost scientist on the Hulk outside of Banner, and then turned an entire town into hulklings, and now Blonsky is missing!?_ And Coulson's own words came back to him, _'Enhanced enough to give the Hulk a tough fight, being able to actually hurt him,' something no one else, not even Thor, can claim to have done. And now he's loose, and no one knows where._

 **XXX**

New Avengers Facility

Tony paused and took a deep breath as he saw Captain America heading towards him, obviously busy as he scrolled his way down a tablet, quickly tapping away at the computer screen. "Steve." Pause. "Steve!"

That time his friend glanced up, and Tony noted how drained the man actually was despite his formidable reserves and willpower, "Huh? Oh, sorry Tony, just been," he paused and just vaguely gestured with his hand.

"Yeah, I know. Also, glad you're getting with the times and how we communicate."

A chuckle, "Wow, guess I really am out of it."

Forcing a smile, Tony nodded. "Understandable. Given what we went through and all. One emotional rollercoaster after another. You guys and HYRDA, your friend back, glad to hear he's doing better by the way, Bruce finding it all out, and then another throw down in a populated city, except this time the monsters we were fighting were the populace we're supposed to be saving. Oh," and Tony acted as if he was having trouble remembering something, "oh yeah. And then we got to see what Fury meant all those years ago about how hilariously outgunned Earth his."

Expression more guarded now, Steve nodded. "Yeah. We're fortunate we've got friends, but we've got to get to the bottom of this. You saw Banner's notes?"

"Alien tech somehow seamlessly melded with ours in a way that makes both of us jealous? Yeah. Someone's playing us, but the question is," and now Tony fixed Steve with his hardest look, "how do we change the game?"

"Stark. Rogers."

Both men in question turned at the sound of the stern voice to look into glaring eye of Nick Fury, "We need to talk. The organization behind all of this has been a lot busier than we first thought."

 **XXX**

Unknown Location

"I just got a signal. They've discovered Blonksy's missing."

"Wow. You were right, they really did think it was smart to use someone like him."

"Yes, I admit that it was a shame that SHIELD chose to lock up super-powered psychos like him instead of killing him. Now the government wants to use them for fodder, thinking it's a grand idea."

"Your jabs about _my_ idea to use Blonsky are acknowledged, and we'll only use him when I've prepared him to your _personal_ satisfaction. Happy?"

"Overjoyed," was the flat response.

"Don't worry. Remember, we _want_ him to run amok. The only important detail is keeping him from damaging Wakanda too much, and to make sure he doesn't kill the Black Panther."

 **XXX**

 **Author Notes:**

 **No Red Hulk scenes should be expected in the future by the way.**

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 **Recommended Fics:**

 **'Synchronicity' by Skyknight1987**

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 **Next Chapter: 'War'**

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 **Please Review!**


	23. War

For better or worse, Marvel owns all of this stuff, not me.

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Chapter 23: War

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 _Previously: Following Thor and the Asgardian military's defense of Las Vegas, their forces were hastily recalled back to Asgard by order of King Odin, who is really Loki in disguise._

 _Meanwhile with the New Avengers, Bruce and Natasha are upset with what they have done, but are committed towards continuing their secret mission of preventing a superhero civil war. Meanwhile, Tony is upset with what he experienced during the Battle of Las Vegas and then goes to confront Steve about what they are to do next. Before they get far however, Nick Fury approaches them about the Appendix. As for the secretive organization, they are planning to unleash Blonsky, the Abomination, upon the country of Wakanda, with the stipulation that the Black Panther be unharmed._

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' _Great holy armies shall be gathered and trained to fight all who embrace evil. In the name of the gods, ships shall be built to carry our warriors out amongst the stars and we will spread Origin to_ all _the unbelievers! The power of the Ori will be felt far and wide, and the wicked shall be vanquished_.'

-The Doci, 'Stargate-Sg1'

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New Avengers Facility

Meeting Room

"—And that's what we've got," Fury finished, looking around the room. Rogers was obviously calculating his way through it all, the Vision was inscrutable, but it was Romanoff and Banner that were the most interesting. If anything, while they were still both upset, it was not as much as Fury had anticipated, implying that they had independently started to put the pieces together. _Maybe approving of two such brilliant people getting together wasn't the safest idea after all?_ He briefly wondered before dismissing the thought, especially since while they were "interesting," it was Stark who was "concerning." The man's silence as he failed to snark about calling their opposition "the Appendix," spoke volumes.

 _Stark's always been a believer in forging his own destiny_ , Fury knew. _As far back as when he was a useless playboy he made his own way, living off his brilliance. Even when he first met Thor, his suit could go toe-to-toe with the god. But now? Now he's seen what Thor and the Asgardians are truly capable of. What Banner is capable of. There's someone out there who's even more brilliant than him, who has been pulling the strings for far too long. The man's scared. We all are, but Stark's the most likely to strike out and do something on his own, and he's got the resources to do it_.  
Stark's eyes shot up from the floor to stab at Fury as if he knew what the man was thinking. "And you're saying you have no idea how they're doing all this? You!?" Tony grimly asked.

"I'm as frustrated as you are. Maybe a little jealous even. We're sure they're not precognitive, but the Appendix has shown impressive insight in the actions of individuals. Predicting what they are most likely to do, and intervening before—"

"Wait! What did you say?" Steve shot out, eyes wide with emotion.

"That they are capable of predicting—" Fury restated, a little annoyed at the interruption, but also confused.

"No! Before that!"

"'Insight.' You said they had insight," Natasha breathed, "but what if it was _Insight_? Project: Insight?!"

"Wait, what is that again? Some SHIELD thing?" Tony asked looking around in confusion at the super-spies and super-soldier, with Bruce also confused.

 **XXX**

[Flashback]

 _A terrified Jasper Sitwell spoke as fast as he could, "Zola'a algorithm is a program," he stopped to gasp for breath, "for choosing Insight's targets."_

 _"What targets?" Steve interrogated_

 _"You!" And now Sitwell appeared amused. "A TV anchor in Cairo, the Under Secretary of Defense, a high school valedictorian in Iowa City, Bruce Banner, Stephen Strange, anyone who's a threat to HYDRA. Now, or in the future."_

 _"In the future? How could it know?"_

 _Now the HYDRA mole was definitely grinning with glee, and then chuckling, "How could it not?" he asked seriously, looking Steve in the eye for the first time since being tossed off the building, and stood up. "The 21st century is a digital book. Zola told HYDRA how to read it." He looked around and saw the same confusion on Natasha and Sam's face, and elaborated. "Your bank records, medical histories, voting patterns, emails, phone calls, your damn SAT scores! Zola's algorithm evaluates people's past to predict their future."_

 **XXX**

 **Present**

Voice thick with concern, Fury answered for them all. "Back during the collapse of SHIELD, there was a crucial part of HYDRA's plans using their helicarriers to kill millions of people across the world to remove all opposition to their rule: target acquisition. To solve this they, they planned to locate people across the world by their DNA, and use a computer algorithm made by Armin Zola, yes, _that_ Armin Zola, to anticipate which individuals would be a threat to HYDRA."

"It used demographics, social media, government records, whatever it could get is hands on, and then create a profile on person that was supposed to predict their future," Steve finished with horror. "Fury, what happened to it? The algorithm"

"Zola was killed, and all remaining copies were destroyed in the fighting, and this all started even before that," the spymaster responded, but the look on his face made it clear that he agreed with Rogers on how the Appendix was probably operating. A sophisticated computer program, especially one that was already proven to be feasible, was much easier to believe than a person Gifted with the ability to see the future. Even a normal human could predict the actions of another if they had enough information, this was simply on a broader scale with the processing power of a supercomputer.

"We know that they have connections to HYDRA," Bruce put in, "do you know when the algorithm was first created?"

The sick look on Natasha and Steve's face was answer enough: they did not. "If they have HYDRA connections, than that means they probably have access to the profiles SHIELD made on all of you too," Fury added absently as his mind raced.

"Well, any more good news," Tony spat out as he grappled with the ramifications of what they were dealing with.

"No, this _is_ good news," Fury corrected, calm and controlled now that he had an angle to work with. "Project: Insight, or something like it, would explain how they are able to do this. They can use it to not only predict the actions of politicians and other important people, but also vigilantes and heroes. Now that we know this we can take advantage of it!" Everyone else was starting to relax now as they thought about this, but Fury declined to continue his line of thought. _And that is how they are trying to ensure a Civil War happens. They can use something like Project: Insight to predict whichever side everyone would take, and then use that information to help predict the outcome. It's not perfect, especially when some new hero could appear at any moment, but it is definitely an advantage_.

"We've got a leak," Natasha concluded. "If they're basing our responses off of our past reactions, then they'd want to keep their information up to date, which means they need access to our personnel files, our present ones."

"Especially with Wanda and I joining, introducing new variables," Vision agreed. "Logically then, they'd have planned for a means to continue acquiring the necessary information."

"Just like Ultron did," Tony muttered aloud.

Steve look resigned at how SHIELD, and Tony, kept making records on the various heroes, because he knew how valuable they still were, even if they kept providing intelligence to the enemy. But at least now they had a way to turn the tables. "We'll make fake profiles from the Vegas aftermath to help send them in the wrong direction, while we start actively hunting."

"Your little speech," a glaring Fury directed at a wincing Bruce, "gave them some forewarning, but we've got the resources and manpower by the looks of it."

Then the conference room door slammed open, "Turn the privacy jammer off and get to the command center," Sam barked. "We've been trying to call you and tell you we've found the Abomination! He's attacking some place called Wakanda!"

 **XXX**

"So what's so special about this Wakanda to have you guys all worked up?" Sam gasped as they raced down the hall, Steve matching the pace of the rest.

"Isolationist country," Tony rattled off, not even breathing heavily. "Possibly the most advanced in the world, particularly since it's the only place where you can find _that_ ," and he pointed at Steve's back and the shield on it for emphasis.

"Vibranium!?"

"Give'm a prize."

"But why haven't I heard about this?"

"Can only assume you're still playing catch up on all our records," to which Tony shot the sheepish Steve a look, "and because the other big boy politicians don't like to admit the most powerful country lives in Africa and thinks the Western world is made of nothing but violent imperialists and barbarians."

"Oh," Sam answered, looking surprised.

 **XXX**

Command center

They rushed in just as the SHIELD technicians were finishing zooming with satellite imagery, giving a brief glimpse of somewhere in Africa that was surrounded by mountains. The rest of the newly awakened New Avengers were already waiting for them there.

"Doesn't look like much from satellite feed," Rhodey mused at the images in front of him, noticing the scattered low-level buildings, many of which looked to be made of just stone.

"That's because once they launched their own satellites into space they moved everything significant underground or dug into the mountains themselves well before anyone else got satellites of their own," Natasha answered. "Just one of many reasons SHIELD's always been worried about what might happen if Wakanda decided that it wanted to be more aggressive about being left alone."  
"Did SHIELD, or HYDRA, ever try to get in?" Sam asked.

"They make deals with weapon's merchants apparently, given what happened with Klaue and how he got his hands on some Vibranium, probably to help gauge how fast everyone else was developing, but anyone who tries getting in uninvited just doesn't come back," Tony answered. "Even SHIELD."

"Where is he?" Bruce tightly interrupted. "Where's Blonsky?"

"There," Vision pointed, a visible hole in the rocky wall surrounding the country. The image was enhanced, and they could clearly see the oversized gamma monster smashing his way through buildings, shrugging off attacks from the defending natives as explosions peppered the intruder. Air craft and tanks appeared out of nowhere and tried to attack, but he jumped forward to crush them or threw debris at them, while more and more soldiers poured out of concealed tunnels.

"Can't we do anything!?" Steve hissed.

Fury shook his head, "We're not sure if even Stark's stealth tech could get close enough without getting shot down, and even if you could, you'd be shot at too."  
"Other side of the world, Steve," Natasha sighed, putting an apologetic hand on his shoulder.

"But then how'd they get him so close?" Bruce wondered aloud, which made Fury glance at Agent Hill.

"Literally just appeared out of nowhere, seems like they've got some stealth tech too, and it got them closer than anyone else before."

Suddenly the Abomination seemed to grow bored and started charging in a particular direction, simply breaking through buildings as he moved at an incredible pace, before he stopped at a particular stone structure and started methodically tearing it apart while ignoring the increasingly frantic fire from the defenders.

"That's a school," Natasha bit out with hate, pointing to the side of the screen where smaller figures were trying to evacuate, while the adults relentlessly retaliated, imagery and scans revealing that they were using increasingly sophisticated weaponry, with brightly visible beams spearing out at the Abomination. .

"No way," Tony whispered, while keeping half an eye on the read-outs, trying to gage how much it would take for him to kill Blonsky.

"Wait, what's—" Bruce began, when suddenly on the screen a figure dressed head-to-toe in the blackest clothing appeared out of nowhere and started leaping at the Abomination again and again, ducking under fists and harassing the monster.

"He's leading Blonksy away," Steve noted, "keeping it up close and personal to divert attention."

Then, the Abomination collapsed.

"Wait, what?"

"Rewind and replay at slower speeds," Vision told them, his eyes narrowing intently.

"Keep another screen showing real time," Steve added.

Slowly, frame by frame they saw something like green fire explode out of the vicinity of Blonsky's head, who then collapsed. A glance at the second screen showed that the body was now only human-sized.

 **XXX**

Wakanda

T'Challa the Black Panther, King of Wakanda stared at the corpse before him, the neck cauterized by the same heat that had consumed the head. He looked around, taking in the devastation that had ravaged his home, the trail of destruction that led straight from the border to here where their children learned, and the traumatized faces of man and child alike. The broken bodies of his countrymen and countrywomen on the ground. He forced himself to look at the attacker, and noted that there were no other injuries except for the killing blow, which had been internal in nature. Some sort of implant, small enough that it had not been noticed?

"Someone set this creature upon us, launched it at our most vulnerable, and killed it when it was no longer proving entertaining," T'Challa growled, making many of his nearby soldiers flinch. He stormed off towards where the invasion had begun, looking to help his injured people, yelling back, "Tell my cabinet that I expect a full briefing on who that was before I return! Dissect his corpse, leave no cell unturned! Maintain the highest alert status! And scan for any transmissions, find out who was monitoring this!"

 **XXX**

Unknown Location

"Cutting it close, don't you think?"

"I did warn you."

A sigh, "Sorry, I knew that using SHIELD's satellite feeds like this would cut into our response time a bit, but I should've listened to you more. Oh well, no harm no foul."

 **XXX**

New Avengers Facility

"No! Don't you get it!?" Tony yelled into Steve's face. "They killed the Abomination! K-I-L-L-E-D. Spell it with me! We couldn't even harm a single gamma monster before, but whoever did it can!"

"Makes sense," Bruce added flatly, cutting in. "They'd have to be stupid mad scientists to not first create a way to kill whatever they're creating."

"Could the Vegas attack have been to lure Bruce out?" Vision wondered aloud.

"No," Natasha disagreed. "We think that was what Laura was meant to do," ignoring the shocked and horrified looks everyone else was wearing except for her husband.

"Worked too," Bruce said with a smile, "not that we're complaining."

"Okay," Tony awkwardly got out.

Shelving this for later, Steve turned to Fury, "You must've developed some sort of backdoor channel to Wakanda since the War," referring to the Second World War.

But the spymaster just shook his head, "Everyone up to Pierce and the World Council kept trying, but overtures or open communications were politely rebuffed, with intruders still killed on the spot."

They all stayed monitoring the situation a little longer, but it was apparent that nothing more was happening as Wakanda worked to recover, responding to SHIELD's offer of assistance with a simple text saying that no help was necessary. Wanda, Sam, and Rhodes went back to bed, while the others returned to their earlier conversation.

 **XXX**

Meeting Room

Bruce fought the urge to hunch over and make himself smaller again, knowing that he could not back down no matter how tense the situation was as Tony and Steve stared at each other, waiting for the other to say something first. Predictably it was his best friend who started it, "They're going to be pushing for Registration even stronger now, and if we fight it, it'll be a nightmare. If they think we aren't working with them, and we don't even fully know who ' _they_ ' are, then they'll be pushing for a complete ban of all super-humans and super-tech. And after all that, they might be right. If we're going to protect the Earth then we've got to take the next step because as we are right now we just aren't ready. It's only been by luck we've gotten by so far."

"And by working together as a team," Steve coldly corrected.

"At what cost while we tried to figure out how to work together?" Tony shot back. "I'm not a team player, I know that, but if we'd been organized and cooperating even before Loki showed up, it might've made a difference."  
Steve opened his mouth to say something but then shut it fast, "You were about to mention Ultron, weren't you?" the inventor calmly accused as they returned to a subject they had deliberately avoided since the fiasco had ended. "That I should've trusted you all more when I was trying to think of something to replace us all so that the fight could continue without us." The unspoken connection to Registration hung in the air.

"We were talking about Zola earlier," Steve finally said. "He claimed that HYDRA was responsible for pushing us in this direction. They were trying to create a hole in this world, problems and fears that only HYDRA could fill in and take away. But even if they weren't responsible, even if we aren't risking moving towards the greater 'security' and 'control' that they embraced, where do you see this ending, Stark? Where do we finally draw the line on how much we control people like you and I?"

"And where do we draw the line on where we give too much freedom to do what they want?" Tony shot back. "I'm surprised you haven't quoted Ben Franklin yet, with 'Those who surrender freedom for security will not have, nor do they deserve, either one,' or however it goes. It could've worked, we could've found a balance before, but now? The world just saw, an entire army of monsters, and that's what they'll call them, duke it out with _gods_ , in a major American city. People everywhere have just been shown how dangerous the universe truly is, and how do _you_ think they'll respond!? How they'll _want_ us to respond!?"

He took a deep breath and continued, "They're scared and mistrustful, and the New Avengers failed to solve the problem! Only Thor and Bruce, the ones everyone's always been the most worried about, they were the only ones seen making any difference!"

"You're afraid," Steve said, his tone understanding, not accusatory, but Tony still heard it that way, "You're afraid of what you saw in Vegas. Of what's out there and how far humanity has to go, and want to use the government to push us even farther so that we can be strong enough to handle it all."

"You could say that, yes," Tony bit out.

"And the Appendix? We both know they've got to have some connection with the various governments if they're going to be pulling anything off."

"Keep your friends close, you're enemies closer," was the rejoinder, "find them from the inside. Worked for us with SHIELD and HYDRA."

Fury looked back and forth between them, Natasha's mind was racing as she knew both men with all their egos, how they both _knew_ how the world _actually_ worked or _should_ work, and realized they were both about to say something that neither one could walk away from, nor forgive.

"Do you remember how we all first met?" Bruce broke in. "First time we were all in the same room together? We were talking about how Fury and SHIELD were making weapons because of meeting Thor. We're back in a full circle. And we all agreed back then, that building a bigger weapon wasn't the solution," Tony paused at that, for however he now felt, he would not, could not, let himself be caught building another weapon except for those individuals he explicitly trusted. For a moment he saw the villages being terrorized by the weapons he had built. The smug metal form of Ultron.

"Has anyone besides me gotten any sleep since Vegas?" Natasha added.

With a sigh, Tony nodded his head, "Yeah, I should get going. Pepper's going to kill me," then his eyes widened in fear as he realized he had not yet called her, and hurried out, never looking Steve in the eyes.

Five minutes after the discussion was done, Steve Rogers received the phone call that Peggy Carter had peacefully passed away a few hours ago.

 **XXX**

Walking down the hallway, Tony paused and then changed direction to somewhere else in the base. "Sergeant Barnes?" he asked a few minutes later.

"Yes," Bucky looked up in mild surprise, "Uhm, you're Iron Man, right?"

"Well, yes. You're doing pretty well for a brainwashed assassin."

The one-armed man just shrugged at the tactless remark, "I guess you're behind on the briefing. I got rid of it just before HYDRA found me and I had to fake it." Then he jerked his head at the armed guards surrounding him, "Of course everyone's smart enough not to take my word for it."

"Good," Tony nodded, "but also glad Capsicle's going to be able to make sure you have a fair trial. That's what I call Rogers," he clarified at Bucky's confused look, which turned to annoyance on his friend's behalf. "Listen," and here the ex-Avenger looked more earnest, "If you need anything, make sure Capsicle," deliberately using the name, "knows I'm there to back you guys up, I've got the best legal team, just ask Agent Hill. But also," and now he pointed at the stump that was Bucky's left shoulder, "Bruce will be offering his high-tech prosthetic, you won't be able to tell that knew arm apart from your old one. But if you want something more, something that can fight, give me a call." And then he left, leaving behind a peace offering for Rogers to show that he was not meaning to end their friendship.

 **XXX**

Natasha and Bruce's room

"This doesn't look good," Natasha murmured to her husband.

"No, but we'll still get through this," he promised her, kissing her cheek before snuggling in closer to her for the long night ahead.

 **XXX**

Asgard

Loki added painkillers for headaches to his list of items that he wished he could request as All-Father. _Although it might seem a little petty, it would surely be pleasant!_

The news from Midgard was worrisome to the extreme, yet the heroes there were already tearing into the matter as thoroughly as their primitive minds were capable of. _Letting them do the legwork, and bear the risks, seems prudent for the immediate future. Thanos is my concern now_. For while Asgard's attention had been focused on quelling the gamma beasts, _something_ had happened that involved Thanos, the enigmatic band of (former?) criminals known as the 'Guardians of the Galaxy,' and possibly another Infinity Stone.

There was also the issue that several star systems had been utterly destroyed.

Unfortunately, because Heimdall's attention had been so focused upon Midgard, the Watcher had missed _what_ exactly had happened, which had been a bucket of water to Loki's face, making him reprioritize, for Asgard could no longer justify standing idly by.

 _We have been distracted by the events on Midgard for too long, perhaps fatally. And_ _I cannot pose as Odin without turning my attention to deal with Thanos. And I must ensure the Mad Titan's utter destruction is so thorough that no trace can be connected between the two of us. The Nine Realms must take action, even if I risk being revealed_.

For that was the heart of the risk Loki was taking, the risk that soon the Realms would demand that the King of Asgard, wielder of the formidable Odinforce stepped forward to do battle. A power, which despite all his efforts, the new monarch decidedly lacked.

Yet there was still hope, even if it would require a gamble on his part.

There was one place in all of Asgard that he had dared not test his façade as King Odin: the Weapon's Vault.

The location where Odin had gathered together the most fearsome weapons he had encountered, along with anything else that could begin Ragnarok. Mighty relics that might in turn provide the means to vanquish Thanos.

The Tesseract, one of the six Infinity Stones that Thanos desired, and if a mortal like Jane Foster could bear the power of another one of the Stones, than surely a god like Loki could master them.

The Casket of Ancient Winters, the greatest weapon of the Frost Giants, which would empower Loki even further.

Yet there was more, such as the Eternal Flame.

The Warlock's Eye

The Tablet of Life and Time.

A curious golden gauntlet with six gems inserted within it.

And so much more than what Loki had glimpsed during his rare visits.

Once everything had been catalogued and evaluated, the next step would be to scour every square millimeter of that chamber for further secrets. The hidden compartments built into Odin's throne alone had been eyebrow raisers. Obviously the man's long lifespan had been the result of more paranoia and forethought than he would have wanted his thuggish warriors to realize. Doubtless Frigga's wisdom and guidance at work.

Yet after the Frost Giants had infiltrated it, and then Loki, Odin _would_ have increased security. _And after what happened last time, I have no interest in discovering what he decided to replace the Destroyer with_. Moreover, after Heimdall's earlier failure to protect these weapons, Loki knew that the Guardian would be keeping a constant eye upon the contents for the next few centuries. Even if he survived an unsuccessful attempt at entering the Vault, if Heimdall should catch him in the act, it was all over. Unfortunately, it was becoming increasingly clear that Loki was going to need those weapons _now_.

Thor was a possibility, with 'Odin' subtly asking his son to retrieve one of the artifacts and Loki discreetly observing. Yet given the oaf's actions shortly before Loki had taken the throne that was rightfully his, it was far from inconceivable that Odin had locked out his only son's access.

 _Speaking of whom…_

"Father, why have I been recalled to Asgard?" a newly healed Thor asked as he approached the throne, emotions bubbling within his voice.

"My son," Loki smoothly lied, "I must request that you turn your attention away from Midgard. The events there are indeed grave, yet you must concern yourself with the needs of the Nine Realms as a whole. Thanos, of whom you drew our attention to, has been active."

Quickly the King of Asgard relayed everything they had learnt in Thor's absence. Loki could see the gears turning in his 'brother's' head before he asked, "What are you asking me to do, Father?"

"Go to the Dwarves of Nidavellir. We are preparing for war and need their assistance. Your experience from your forays into the greater universe, and your numerous victories in war, will allow you to give them the necessary advice to craft the necessary weapons."

"Understood. Will we be rebuilding the fleets of old?"

"You have been giving this some thought," 'Odin' conceded, hiding his surprise.

"Thanos' reach is too far spread for us to defeat him in one strike with the Bifrost. And he will be aware of our methods and can hide his own forces from Heimdall. We need alternatives available to us," Thor answered seriously, speaking to both his father and to the assembled warriors to let them know why Asgard was breaking away from conventional military wisdom.

In many ways, Asgard's previous campaigns had resembled, and inspired, the Viking raids of Midgard. Using the Bifrost to strike unseen until the last moment where the enemy was most vulnerable, and then charging relentlessly forward until all had been crushed beneath them. They had other strategies of course, yet that was a tried and true favourite, and now Prince Thor of all people was claiming it would likely be inadequate.

"Indeed, which only vindicates my decision to send you to them. Afterwards, begin recruiting warriors for what is to come."

Thor gave a graceful nod, "I shall do this. But," At this Thor humbly lowered his head as a sign of difference, "may I find a warrior to go to Midgard to help them face whatever threat lurks in the shadows? Especially in light of what has happened to Wakanda?"

Loki paused in consideration of this, for the oaf's request offered interesting possibilities. Truthfully, there was only one person Thor would trust with such a request. Losing access to that person would remove a skilled fighter, yet for the time being everyone was focused on preparations for war, and she had little patience or skills to offer in such efforts such as logistics. Loki could retain her for further training of the soldiers, but truthfully she was wasted on all but the most elite of warriors (and even then she severely outclassed everyone short of the Warriors Three), but having more agents on Midgard offered far more potential. The allure of an army of those green beasts was too great a temptation in these troubling times.

"Choose whomever you ask to watch over Midgard in your stead," he magnanimously declared.

Thor gave another nod, turned to leave to go ask his friend if she would be willing, yet then turned back, "Father, might I ask of you an unprecedented request?'

"Speak."

"That we approach the other powers within this universe for aid, those who live outside of the Nine Realms."

Stunned silence resounded throughout the royal halls of Asgard as the assembled warriors stared aghast at the words from the mouth of the Thunderer himself.

"Explain yourself," 'Odin' rasped.

"The threat we face is too great for us alone, and every living thing is endangered so long as the Mad Titan breathes."

"It shall be considered," 'Odin' finally forced out. Still Thor stood before his king, unmoving. "Remind us of this proposal at the next war council" Odin barked in defeat, trying to put off this discussion until another time. With another nod, Thor quickly departed.

Fuming, Loki was lost in thought as he wondered what to do with the mess that Thor had publicly dropped in his lap. Even if only as cannon fodder, the mortals of the universe could be of some use, yet Loki's pride chaffed at turning for aid outside of the Nine Realms, and he knew without a doubt it would be even more so for the real Odin.

"My king," a warrior finally spoke up as Thor left, "so we are indeed at war?"

" _Obviously, idiot_ ," Loki wanted to snarl, but held his tongue, and stood up, acting as regal as he knew how, and began his melodramatic speech that should suffice to seduce them all with its over-the-top promise of glory and battle.

"Thanos has become too great a threat for us to ignore, and so great armies shall be gathered and trained to fight all who embrace his evil. In the name of Asgard, ships shall be built to carry our warriors out amongst the stars, and we will bring justice to _all_ the mortals. The power of Asgard will be felt far and wide, and the wicked shall be vanquished."

 **XXX**

Later

Loki hid his frustration as he reclined on his throne, desperately trying to find a means through the oncoming chaos.

 _Within any problem or threat there is always opportunity_ , he reminded himself, but then more darkly, " _although I've never faced a threat such as Thanos before_. _A war with the Mad Titan_ will _be a messy affair, and far too much can go wrong, including him revealing my previous collaboration with him. On the bright side, many of these fools will kill themselves with "honourable" deaths before this is over. So long as I confirm if Thor can access the vault beforehand. Hmm…maybe if it kills him I can make it look like he had actually left for a solo mission on his own initiative and got killed for it? Later._

 _Though the only one who'll be safe for now will be Sif. No matter, and she does have experience on Midgard, especially—_

Loki's train of thought halted with a screech as he struggled to work his way through his newest scheme.

 _A man who's nearly unstoppable, and the center of some scheme that I cannot unravel_.

 _A_ man _who is nearly unstoppable_.

 _And down in our prison cells is an Asgardian who can bewitch_ any _man into becoming her slave_.

 _The sorceress Lorelei_.

 _I wonder what she would say to having the Hulk under her thrall? And in exchange, I might gain a powerful new tool to fight Thanos with._

 **XXX**

 **Author Notes:**

 **I had a lot planned out for Wakanda, easily an entire chapter depicting how I felt the MCU would portray the country. But then I realized that it kind of distracted from the story and my own plans, especially since this is predominantly a Brutasha story after all.**

 **So Asgard is being pulled out of the picture now. They got their moment of awesome, showing the Earth how powerful, and terrifying they are, but now they are committed towards Thanos and intergalactic war. The reference to the Guardians of the Galaxy is part of my prediction for their next movie.**

 **If you Google: Marvel Cinematic Universe Wiki Odin's Vault, you will find that list of items I said were in the vault. Includes links to explain what the significance of them is in the comic storylines.**

 **And yes, Loki's speech is from Stargate Sg-1, yet given context of egotistical "gods," it was beyond me to resist.**

 **-0-**

 **Recommended fics:**

 **"How Pepper Killed Civil War" by MiniM236**

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 **Please Review and I will get back to you!**


	24. Pieces on the Board

For better or worse, Marvel owns all of this stuff, not me.

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Chapter 24: Pieces on the Board

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 _Previously: Knowing that he could no longer remain on Earth while Thanos was in motion, yet still concerned about the events that were playing out on his second home, Thor asked King 'Odin' to send a trusted champion and friend to aid the New Avengers._

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" _Wakanda is a tiny nation in the midst of a vast continent that has never known true peace. Our culture, our art, our technology –none of it would exist, none of it could have survived, were we not willing to defend it, fiercely and decisively._

 _"I am not merely the Princess Regent of Wakanda. I am the claws of the panther god on Earth._

 _"Ask yourself:_

 _What would a panther do to protect its den?_ "

-Princess Shuri, "Doomwar" by Jonathan Maberry

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New Avengers Facility

Two days later

Steve Rogers looked back and forth between the couple at the breakfast table, obviously fighting the need to ask what was wrong between them. Wanda had taken one look at the chilly atmosphere between Bruce and Natasha and decided it would be nice to eat on the patio, dragging Vision along with her. Sam appeared to be ignoring it, which Steve found a little curious, but it was Rhodey who decided to get involved. _Too much influence from Stark_ , Steve concluded.

"Soo, what's going on between the two of you?"

Silence. Bruce just kept eating his cereal and Natasha kept chewing on her toast.

"Natasha? Bruce? Why've you guys been giving each other the silent treatment?"

 _Because they like to run from their emotional problems, or bury them away,_ Sam thought to himself. _Handling them, especially when it's with someone else, isn't something they're used to, and they're both hoping it'll just go away_.

"Is this about what happened in Vegas?"

Steve stiffened as the Rhodey poked the taboo, and the man in question flinched at the cold looks the couple shot him.

"Don't be [something in Russian I will not repeat] about something you don't know anything about, Rhodes," Natasha icily informed him.

"What happened, happened," Bruce added, the briefest twitch of green in his eyes, "but now we're going make sure it doesn't happen again."

"Soo you're not upset about that?" War Machine tried again, utterly confused.

"No!" "No!"

At this point Sam just kicked the man from under the table to get the message across, but a glance at Steve made it clear that the super-soldier also believed the two of them. Whatever they were upset about it was not about Vegas. _What then? At least they're still a united front though, and they came in together so they're still probably still living together_. While silence reigned again, the counselor debated on whether or not he should get involved, sometime after breakfast when they had both calmed down, or whether it would best for the two of them to work it out on their own. It _was_ to all appearances their first real fight since getting back together after all.

A familiar flash of rainbow light outside of the window then took those thoughts away from him.

 **XXX**

Instead of a hunky, hulking Thor standing outside upon a burnt pattern in the ground from the Bifrost, they found a striking looking women in red with silver armour. She gave a cautious smile at seeing them and walked forward with a grace everyone recognized: this was a dangerous woman, skilled in the art of violence.

 _When was the last time I saw a woman who didn't walk like that_ , Steve wondered, but it was all academic. _Not that I'm really complaining either_. Sam and Rhodey were also appreciative of the athletic women, and the sharp face framed by shoulder-length hair. Taking their lead from Steve, they were also a bit more relaxed.

"Lady Sif," Steve said in greeting, "pleasure to have you. Is Thor doing alright?"  
"The Prince is fit and well, Captain America," she assured him, glad to see the man that she had already spoken so much with after the battle with the Green Beasts. A familiar face would hopefully ease the transition. "King Odin has given him an important task elsewhere, but in light of recent developments on Midgard, it was believed prudent to send aid to Thor's allies here."

"Well then, we're glad to have you, and any friend of Thor is a friend of ours," Steve smiled, while holding out his hand in greeting, and without hesitation Sif shook it gently but firmly.

 _Must've learned about handshakes from Thor_ , Natasha decided as Steve began introductions. The newcomer's arrival was unexpected, and doubtless there would be another period of teaching her of the ways of Earth, but if Thor sent her than Lady Sif was definitely a formidable fighter, perhaps even more than the subtle clues already hinted. _Having another woman around can't hurt either_ , she added, glad to be past the days when she was the only woman on the team.

"And this is," Steve began as he reached Natasha in Bruce as he got to them in the lineup of New Avengers, "Lady Romanoff and Lord Banner!" Sif exclaimed excitedly.

"Uhm, yes we are. How'd you know?"

"I heard the descriptions and knew you for your red hair and green eyes, plus how the man, Lord Bruce I presumed, was so close to you. It is an honour to meet you, Lady Natasha!" Sif beamed, throwing everyone off guard at her enthusiasm.

"Oh?" was the guarded reply.

"Indeed," Sif nodded, "already songs of your deeds are being sung throughout Asgard!"

Natasha just stared blankly for a moment, "Me? Yeah, I've fought with Thor, but—"

"No, because of what you yourself have done."

"And just about Natasha?" Rhodey put in.

The Asgardian gave him a rueful look, "While your deeds in repelling the horde are of note, the Lady Romanoff and Lord Banner are the ones that caught the interest of our people more."

"Oh no," Bruce moaned rubbing his hands over his head, trying to relieve the building pressure.

"Oh—kay," Natasha finally said, "I get why for Bruce, given what the Big Guy did, but why me? And just call us Bruce and Natasha."

"Because he is your mate!" Sif explained as if it were obvious.

"Wait, what?" Bruce asked, peeking through his fingers, unsure of how he should respond to that while Natasha raised a dangerous eyebrow.

"And your own deeds! Defeating Loki of all people," the Avengers appreciated how bitter the name sounded to her tongue, "in a game of wits. And Heimdall saw your fight against such overwhelming odds in defense of your child! Truly you chose well," Sif complimented Bruce, his obscuring hands hiding how he was paling a little.

"Please," Natasha grimly asked, with the Asgardian now taking note of their reactions, "don't mention that. But nothing about the others?" she continued, cursing to herself at how clumsy her attempt to change the conversation was.

Quickly concluding there was something else of note she was missing, paused in thought. The Prince had warned her that the humans amongst the Avengers took less pleasure in battle than most warriors of Asgard, and those who did chose to be humble about it, but it was clear that for Lord Bruce and Lady Natasha they felt some shame. _Thor said that he hated that power, but does he hate himself? Does he does not understand?_ Clearing her throat, she tried again, "Lord Banner, I mean, Bruce, it is not the beast, the Hulk I believe you call it, that we respect, but you," nodding at the look of confusion he shot her. "The Hulk is one of the most dangerous threats we've ever encountered, yet you spend every day chaining it within you. It may get out at times, but for every other moment, it is _you_ who are the stronger, and we of Asgard respect you for that. For while it is a quieter kind of glory, it is glorious nonetheless."

Then the one the ancients knew as the God of War then turned to Natasha, "Your triumph against Loki alone would have earned you favour in the halls of Midgard, and what higher honour is there then protecting one's child against an overwhelming force, and succeeding?" and took satisfaction at the redhead's stiff nod. "As for being the chosen of Bruce," here Sif tried to be more careful, acknowledging how she herself would hate to be respected only for who she had married. The fact that Thor regarded her as worthy as any male from the start (especially after she broke his nose in a spar) was one of the reasons she loved him. "In Asgard, Thor has told us that you were peers, that in terms of a warrior's heart and will you were on par with your mate, if not greater."

"So you mean that if Bruce chose Natasha as his partner, than she must be as formidable as he is?" Steve clarified.

"Yes," Sif beamed, happy that the humans understood.

"OK, thanks," Natasha finally said, and Bruce gave a nod himself. While they did not necessarily agree with most of what the Asgardian had said, they did appreciate the part about them being seen as equals. The truth was that Natasha always felt that Bruce was the stronger of the two of them, while he had always believed that she was the truly admirable one. "But please don't sing those songs here."  
Accepting his humility, Sif agreed.

 **XXX**

Somewhere in the United States

Lorelei grimaced as she looked at the small town in the distance. The sorceress had gone to sleep one night in prison her cell in Asgard, and had woken up back on Midgard. A bag of provisions and supplies was beside her, a note giving her instructions and advice, and a collection of photos on paper of all things with relevant information typed onto them. Crude, but the letter had included a warning against risking the inhabitants of this world gaining access to any of Asgard's technology.

There was also an implant inside of her.

A mortal might not notice it, but Lorelei was an Asgardian, and was well aware that a mechanical device of unknown origin or purpose had been inserted within her body during her artificially enhanced sleep. _Probably not enough to constantly monitor me, especially if whoever this is wants to be discrete, which even a hidden link would risk, but doubtlessly capable of killing me if I_ ' _betray_ ' _whoever it is_.

Admittedly it was a short list for those who could be capable of such a feat, removing her from her cell on Asgard and depositing her upon another world, but the means and motive –especially since one of the top suspects was supposedly dead– for them was unclear. _Although I have heard from the guards on how Thor has changed_ , she pondered before dismissing the thought for present concerns. _And I admit that this opportunity is indeed tantalizing, even aside for the opportunity to deal with Sif._ Not for revenge of course, but because if Sif could catch her twice, than it was best to make sure there was not chance for a third time. Especially since the note warned that they were both back on Midgard again.

She went back to her readings, slowly forming a plan. It would of course still be necessary to recruit one of the local males, to both give and gain further intelligence, but whoever had done this to her apparently had past information working with Midgardian dissident groups.

Unbeknownst to the sorceress, the implant within her was not a bomb, but something else entirely. The mastermind behind her release had set a timer within it to wait until Heimdall was likely no longer paying attention to Earth, leaving the task to Sif, and now the miniscule device had finished counting down. At the set time, a certain beacon shot off a sophisticated compressed data burst.

 **XXX**

Unknown Location

"We just picked up an unidentified signal. Wait. It says it's Asgardian in origin!"

"What else?"

"It's originating from US, and the only reason we're even picking it up is because it's being broadcasted across the globe!"

"What does it mean? What's Asgard up to?"

"I, I don't know. Hopefully nothing."

"But if it's not nothing?"

The sound of an indrawn breath, "Then we'll have to just wait and see so that we know where to act."

 **XXX**

Lounge

Steve noted that while Lady Sif was relaxing on her chair, her posture alert and poised to leap up and attack at a moment's notice. _I'd hope this more informal setting would help, but I guess she'll still be getting used to us. Unless this is normal for her._

"During the attack by the Green Beasts," Lady Sif began, "another threat was revealed elsewhere, which is what warranted our sudden withdrawal from Midgard. In the face of this new crisis, Thor knew that he would best serve the Nine Worlds by heading out to deal with it himself, but given the rising concerns on Midgard he requested that King Odin send someone to aid your efforts. He chose me."  
At this Sif pulled out a small gem from her belt, and the image of Thor bloomed into the air, "My friends, I could not leave you to face whoever hides in the shadows alone, so I called upon my dear friend Lady Sif to aid you. She is a fearsome warrior, cunning and learned, and has spent more time on Earth than you may realize, discreetly dealing with threats to your world that Asgard felt responsible for." At this Thor gave a rueful smile, "Far better than I would have done for sure," and Natasha noticed how Sif's eyes practically lit up at this praise. _Oh boy_.

"I know you will come to see her as a friend and ally in short time," Thor continued, "and I hope to return to you soon, but I will do so knowing you are all well. Tell next we meet." And then his image faded away.

As Sif pocketed the 'gem,' Sam spoke up, "So what are you the god of?" At her surprised look he elaborated, "Sorry, been meaning to brush up on my, well, not mythology, but y'know," he awkwardly finished with a wave of his hand.

Sif gave an equally awkward smile, "I believe I'm known as the goddess of war on your world."

"Guess Thor wasn't kidding when he said you were a fighter then," Bruce said, also noting how she enjoyed that particular kind of compliment.

With a flic of her wrist there was a sword in her hand, one blade pointed to the ceiling, with another almost sticking right into the floor. Then the weapon had shrunk down into something that fit into the palm of her hand and she reattached it to her belt. "Yes."

 _Must remember to look at that later_ , Bruce promised himself. She might be slightly wary of Tony, but doubtless Dr. Selvig could be of help. If the two scientists could not find a way to improve the world with that technology, with something that was not for the military industrial sector, they would have to hand in their doctorates. _Scratch that_ , he remembered as the man who was no longer a pure scientist gave his brain a sharp rap, _remember to_ ask _to look at that later. Don't want to break my quota on building murder robots after all. Or something worse._

That was the problem with "Best to beg for forgiveness than permission," sometimes you really, really should have gotten that permission. Especially when it involves Asgardian tech.

"But what kind of threat pulled Thor away from Earth?" Rhodey asked with confusion, noting how both Sif and recording-Thor were being a little evasive about it.

"Honestly, I would rather not talk about it," Sif finally said, "it's an unpleasant topic, and once Thor has dealt with it, one that should never be spoken again by polite sentients."

 _She said 'sentients,' as in plural_ , Natasha noted, _so whatever it is it concerns more than just Asgard. Best to pry into it at a later date though_.

Frowning in thought, Vision spoke up, which got a few subtle surprise reactions from his comrades, "Yet your presence was still deemed necessary here on Earth, despite the threat you face back home."

A slight twist to Sif's mouth made it abundantly clear that she would rather be involved with whatever conflict Thor faced, but she nodded. "Yes. As I said before, the mysteries of the Hulk are now too great to ignore, and while I am no scientist, I possess a great deal of knowledge and experience, and I am skilled in battle. But in truth," Sif added, "it was the attack on Wakanda that may have convinced Odin that immediate action was necessary."

"What's Asgard's concern with Wakanda?" Steve asked in confusion, wondering what connection there could be between the gods of Norse mythology and an African nation.

"Wakanda is unique amongst your other lands, possessing several qualities that have led Heimdall, the guardian of Asgard, and his predecessors to keep an eye out on it. The most obvious reason of course being the presence of what you call Vibranium."

"You know about Vibranium? Thor knows about Vibranium?" Bruce asked in surprise, to which Sif looked confused as well. "Yes. Or at least possibly. I admit he never did seem to spend much attention during his lessons."

"Guess he didn't think it was relevant at the time," Steve offered.

Shrugging, Sif continued, "Vibranium is a rare mineral with numerous properties that is produced only by a rare astrological event when certain planets are formed, with the source in Wakanda being the result of a meteor crashing to Midgard. It is also the sole source of Vibranium left in the universe."

"Uhm, what?" Bruce asked, his face now that of a pure scientist. "How is that even possible?"

"During a previous war, one with the Dark Elves, the metal had several uses outside of combat. Do you perhaps use metals that are particularly useful carrying electrical currents or for making sophisticated machine components? Well, Vibranium was a critical component for building advanced power sources, but would be eventually destroyed by the very energies that were produced. This required both sides to harvest all that could be found from throughout the universe to maintain their war engines."  
"But you didn't use it to directly fight with," a strangely uncomfortable Steve noted.

Sif drew and twirled her sword, "It has its uses, but it cannot be altered to resist monomolecular blades, and other alloys are just as effective against energy weapons. In the end, only the cache on Earth was left, and as one of the Nine Realms both sides were hesitant to mine there, and by that point a synthetic alternative was created by Asgard, but one without any other uses. After we won the war, King Bor, Thor's grandfather, decided to prevent other races from misusing Vibranium by having Asgard interfere whenever one of those rare astrological events occurred. We also kept an eye on Wakanda to ensure that no one tried to steal it from there. It is possible that the recent attack was part of a plan to do so."

The New Avengers were all thrown off by this casual revelation, but tried to hide it from their guest. "Was there another reason Wakanda is of concern?" Natasha asked

"Magic," Sif answered, looking a little awkward about it. "I don't know much about the art myself, that was more Loki or Thor's mother's domain, but the people of Wakanda had developed functional magic."

Bruce blinked, but chose to calmly accept what he had been told. A good scientist waited until they had all the details after all, and he had surely heard stranger things.

"From what Heimdall told me, over the last few centuries the warrior kings of Wakanda have developed some healing magic that helped keep them strong and healthy." Sif was tempted to go on, but decided it was best to and gather some further information. It was possible that there was more to Thor's silence on the matter with the New Avengers than deeming the matter irrelevant, her friend may have deemed it prudent that no one realize that the with the recent militarization of the Wakanda they had had been working to do the same with their mystic arts, even if they were running into difficulties developing new forms of sorcery, and perverting a practice that had been carefully crafted to avoid such an occurrence.

"This was all in your briefing?" Natasha asked with some surprise, hoping to get some more information on this more immediate problem.

"No," Sif denied, "I learned about it in school in my youth, though I only learned of the Dark Elf connection after their recent attack on Asgard. It became apparent that certain parts of our history needed to be reexamined. But again, given how this shadowy threat now appears interested in Wakanda, and perhaps the potential we hope remains secret there, Odin agreed that my presence here was of more value than back home with our other preparations."

"You learned stuff like that in school?" Wanda gaped.

"Yes," Sif confirmed, but her manner gave the impression that this was a question she had had to answer in the affirmative several times before.

"So Wakanda's got the potential to be even more dangerous that SHIELD believed," Natasha concluded. "We should be careful on how we present that to SHIELD," and noticed another faint reaction from the Asgaridan warrior.

"Guess that means someone's really gone and poked a sleeping tiger then?" Sam added.  
"If that is something that hides dangerous claws, fangs, and spines when it sleeps, then yes," Sif answered without hesitation.

 **XXX**

New Avengers Facility

Secure Holding

Later

The cell to imprison the Winter Soldier, once more Bucky Barnes, was surprisingly luxurious. Nothing that could be used as a weapon, but soft music was played by the guards for him, and the uneaten food on the meal tray off to the side was tasty looking, and the man himself was sitting on a soft mattress. Right now though the guards were outside of the room, with Natasha monitoring the video feed in case she needed to call them in. Fortunately, Bucky had just been calmly talking to Sam Wilson on the other side of the force field wall.

"Alright," Sam finally sighed, "it looks like you're definitely a lot better than from the first time we met on the highway."

"You're testing me," Bucky smiled, "and that wasn't me."

That was unfortunately debatable, especially since SHIELD scientists and their findings on brainwashing were not exactly welcome in legal courts as proof that Bucky could not be held responsible for his actions. Aside from publicly discussing the sensitive material, and the public fears it would raise, those agents were still technically operating illegally. At the very least it was a gray area they were unwilling to risk. Bucky's previous, if unwilling, affiliation with HYDRA would also make it hard to find an unbiased jury. For the most part though, it was accepted by the New Avengers and SHIELD that Bucky had not been responsible for whatever the Winter Soldier had done, and he had been providing a detailed accounting of just what the "Asset" had inflicted on the world.

 _Still, he's repressing and denying memories that cover almost an entire century. No way that's healthy_ , Sam sadly concluded, aware that the man was well aware of what his body had been doing. Bucky might, might, not be a threat to anyone else, but Sam was concerned for the man's own health.

"You aren't going to let me out into the field," Bucky stated, getting a feel for the counselor's feelings from his eyes.

"Sorry, but yeah. Eventually though."

"That's fine," Bucky reassured him. "I want this done right, and I trust you guys for that."

"Thanks."

"But one thing though: Steve."

Now Sam straightened up from his more relaxed pose, "Oh?"

"I know that you've been watching his back, helping him through all this, and thanks. You did what I used to do, even after he stopped being so little any more, and not just for minor things like people trying to kill him, but I need to know you'll keep doing it."

"I will," Sam promised.

"Good. 'Cause when I get out of here he'll then have the both of us, so he'll be free to go save the world," Bucky said, with Sam mirroring his smile.

 **XXX**

Later that night

Unable to sleep, Steve looked out the window in the team lounge, cocking his head at the sound of footsteps, readily identifying them as Wanda Maximoff's. "Couldn't sleep either?"

Grimacing, "Different this time," she admitted, referring to nightmares.

 _Not her brother then, or Ultron. Vegas?_ But Steve did not pry, he knew there was a time and place to do so, and this was not it.

They let the silent night pass before them, but at last Steve felt the need to talk. "You know I'm not from these times, right?"

"We were told that meant you were a sexist racist like Americans were back then, just worse than you all are now," she joked.

Chuckling, Steve shook his head, "Then they never saw who was in the Howling Commandos," and the he sobered up, "and no one really heard about Peggy, _Agent_ Peggy Carter."  
Blinking at the surge of emotions from the man, Wanda turned to look at him. "She was an amazing woman," he continued, "a field agent, one of the first people I met with the program that gave me the Super-Soldier Serum, and she was also one of the first people I ever met that didn't look down on me for my condition."  
"Condition?"

"I was short and scrawny," he deadpanned, "and if there was a sickness or health issue I had it. But even before the serum she looked at the real me, and not the guy on the outside. And afterwards, well."

The silence stretched on, but Wanda understood what he was getting at. "Did you ever tell her?"  
"Just before I went on ice. When I got back…"

Wanda did the math, but dared not say anything.

"She had Alzheimer's."

"I'm sorry." What else could she say?

"She passed away while we were in Vegas, old age," Steve continued, trying to keep his voice even, "And I never had the chance to really say how I felt. We kissed just before I got on that plane before sinking, we promised each other a date, we both _knew_ , but I never said it. And every time I saw her when I got back…" He trailed off, unable to continue.

Silently, Wanda walked over and held onto the man's shoulders, just being there for him like he and the others had been there for her after Pietro had passed on.

An eternity later Steve reached out and put an arm around her and squeezed before straightening up a bit and she let go, "Thanks. I think I might get a little sleep now."

"You do that soldier," she mock ordered him, and with smiling salute he headed back to his room.

She almost went to join him, but then Wanda looked up, "What about you? Are you alright?"  
"I wasn't sure what to say," Vision admitted as he drifted down to her.  
"I didn't either, they're the ones who always knew what to say to me after Pietro…died," she admitted with difficulty. "So all I could do was be there for him."

"That's good," Vision said, but it was clear that he was still not entirely sure of what he should have done. "And you? Does helping him make you feel a little better?"  
"A little bit," she smiled. "Mind taking me back to my room?"

"Of course not."

 **XXX**

Sif took a moment to look around her humble lodgings. Compared to some of the places she had rested in the past, it was a palace, but still it grated at her. Not the primitiveness of it all, but that it would be a constant reminder whenever she woke of where she was. Thor, the man she loved, had entrusted her with protecting Midgard, his second home, despite the shadowy forces that were assailing it. His respect warmed her heart, even as she knew it meant she would be absent from the preparation for war against the Mad Titan, and may even miss it altogether. _And even worse, unlike my previous forays here, I may meet Jane Foster_ , she conceded. Sif trusted her self-restraint, but knew that any such meeting with the beloved of Thor would be as painful as when she met her on Asgard during the human's brief stay.

 _Enough. I've a duty to fulfill, and I shall be worthy of it!_ And with that she put aside the bag she had brought with her, and laid down to rest, for she had not slept since the battle in the place called 'Vegas.' She would need all her wits about her in this strange world.

 **XXX**

Secret SHIELD Safe house

SHIELD Specialist Amanda Waller sighed with relief when she entered her private quarters. It had been a long and grim day of playing up her undercover identity, followed by final mission planning, and tomorrow her team was to move in and eliminate their targets, so she badly wanted some rest. She had spent the last week infiltrating a particularly vile human trafficking ring that specialized in children. Director Coulson had originally been concerned that the organization had connections to a HYDRA cell that was buying and indoctrinating the next generation of foot soldiers, with the intention to go dark in order to successfully remerge decades later like they had attempted to do following World War II. Yet such concerns had become secondary once it was clear how horrific the situation was for all those young boys and girls.

This crime leader was one of those who believed that sufficient cruelty meant greater efficiency, which included a special 'product line' of those who had been sufficiently broken for select clients, and Amanda knew it would be her pleasure to show the man the error of his ways. At length. The Director was more than willing to settle for whatever could be found in computer files and similar records as opposed to live prisoners to interrogate, and had personally promised that aid for all the children was already on its way via contacts that he trusted.

"Hello, sister," a pleasant baritone cut in, and a startlingly familiar one. One that she had not heard for years, and should not even been spoken upon this very continent, never mind the hidden base of a secretive intelligence organization. She hurried into the next room, unsurprised to find that her secured residence had been infiltrated and that she had not detected her brother's presence.

He was the Black Panther after all.

The Warrior King of Wakanda.

T'Challa.

Brother! It is good to see you! What are you doing here? she whispered out in haste, gleeful at the feeling of her native tongue wafting out of her mouth.

To her irritation, her brother answered in turn in perfect American English. "And I'm glad to see you too, Shuri. Sadly, I bring dark news." And then he began to tell her of the attack by the one they know knew as the Abomination, with her responding in English as well as she realized he was practicing his accent.

Agent Waller, no, Princess Shuri of Wakanda once more, paced angrily back and forth, struggling against her need to take some sort of action. Any action! "So what are you going to do about this?" She bit out. "What can _I_ do?"

"Can you get closer to the Avengers?"

Unfazed by this request she immediately answered. "No. They aren't looking for another combat specialist from SHIELD. Moreover, if I approached them like that out of the blue without any prior contact, it would raise suspicions from within SHIELD itself."

T'Challa nodded in understanding, remembering how his little sister had nearly been outed during HYDRA's uprising. It had been sobering to realize HYDRA had been aware of Shuri's true identity from the start, and had deliberately let her pass the vetting processes in order to analyze what intelligence the Princess was after. During SHIELD's purge of all the moles, Shuri had only escaped detection by the fact she had personally and systematically eliminated most of the HYDRA agents at the base she was assigned to, specifically the ones who knew her secret and had tried to blackmail her into cooperating with them. She had passed the truth-and-lie detector test SHIELD had given her afterwards regarding her loyalty because the questions were geared towards making sure she was not a deep cover mole for _HYDRA_ , who had killed her compatriots to maintain her cover, without considering the possibility that she was an infiltrator for 'hostile' nation. A proper interrogator would have caught her, but the ones who should have carried it out had all been already dead for various reasons.

"Besides," Shuri continued, "it would be the Black Widow who'd have to agree to let me in, and she has never really trusted me. Same with Director Coulson, otherwise I would not be kept on simple wet work assignments like this, and kept distant from his more sensitive operations, or even kept from actively fighting HYDRA. Except for when he met me and the rest of my team to make sure we were vetted, he's never given us orders directly like he has other agents." She hesitated, "Moreover, the Avengers are rumoured to have a telepath."

T'Challa frowned at this, "Then I will have to be the one to take the necessary steps after all. Maintain your cover, but find out what you can about the telepath to send back home for analysis so that we can find a way to block this ability."

Now Shuri was the one furrowing her brow. "What're you planning?"

"Wakanda needs to know more about all these new threats to the world, so the Black Panther shall become an Avenger."

She blinked in surprise at this, only the long experience of her older brother proving his genius to be correct whenever he came up with a crazy idea stopped her from reacting more strongly. Instead, "How?"

"It will take a while, but I will begin to work as a vigilante. Build up my reputation so that the New Avengers eventually invite me to join. I will act as an example of a hero following the ideals Captain America is working to portray: a hero who saves people without needing to answer to the government, yet doesn't do anything objectionable."

Shuri's mind raced as she worked to anticipate what her brother was planning. It appeared that one objective was to support Captain America's passive aggressive opposition of the Superhero Registration Act, which made sense it would make the American government even more dangerous if it controlled all the Gifted. Alternatively, his performance could still make him acceptable for later recruitment by the initiative if it was approved, allowing him to infiltrate the government program, which would offer him some fascinating opportunities. _Or he's planning to carry out both ideas at the same time, or something even more audacious_ , she conceded, knowing that T'Challa was easily capable of planning out multiple plans on multiple levels at once. He was the Black Panther, the ideal predator and protector, for a reason after all. "I'll see what I can do to help," she promised as less a dutiful subject, and more a loyal sister and friend, and he smiled in honest gratitude.

 **XXX**

Asgard

Loki sat upon his throne in thought. _That was too close with Heimdall, he nearly caught me getting Lorelei through the paths between worlds. As it is, I won't be able to maintain my illusion of her in her cell for more than another week, not unless I want to risk tipping my hand regarding how powerful whoever helped her is._

Fortunately, he had already concocted an excuse for 'Odin' to go down to the prison cells, claiming that he wished to question the criminal about her own experiences with SHIELD while on Earth, and then he would "discover" the deception. The King would openly speculate that she had managed to bewitch some unknown person while she was last free, either before her original incarceration or during her brief previous visit to Earth, who had only know had the opportunity to liberate her, probably while the bulk of Asgard's military forces were fighting the green monsters.

Sadly, all of the Asgard's attention had to be focused upon Thanos, so it would be left to Sif and the Avengers to handle, with Lorelei luring them to her anyways. Thor of course was off-world, and could not be reached, and the Warrior's Three were also too occupied to independently go lend aid. Such a shame.  
Moreover, Lorelei would be able to help Loki contact the minions he had left on Earth.

While his defeat at the hands of the Avengers had been unforeseen, not all of Loki's resources had been swept up as he had let the Oath and his human pets believe. Before allowing himself to be "captured," Loki had dispatched those who would not be joining Barton in assaulting the SHIELD Helicarrier upon a crucial mission that would have ensured his ability to secure his domination over Earth, regardless of what Odin or Asgard attempted.

 **XXX**

Years ago on Midgard

Loki's hidden base

 _"Put it over there," Dr. Selvig gestured to an assistant and fellow mind slave as he looked up from the strange machine he was working on. With a slightly unhinged smile he then walked over to Clint Barton who was standing to the side. "Where'd you find all these people?" he asked as the noise of others working in the background drifted over._

 _"SHIELD has no shortage of enemies, Doctor," Hawkeye answered, habit making his tone evasive despite his current condition. "This the stuff you need?" He held up a tablet displaying some pictures._

 _"Yeah, Iridium, it's found in meteorites. It forms anti-protons," Selvig explained while absently constructing a new component. "It's very hard to get ahold of."_

 _"Especially if SHIELD knows you need it."_

 _"I didn't know," Selvig reassured him brightly, before he noticed their approaching Master. "Hey! The Tesseract is showing me so much. It's more than just knowledge, it's... truth."_

 _"I know," Loki smugly said as he looked into Selvig's unnaturally blue eyes. "What did it show you, Agent Barton?"_

 _"My next target."_

 _"Tell me what you need."_

 _"I'll need a distraction," and then the archer unfurled a sleek looking bow, "and an eyeball."_

 **XXX**

Asgard

Present day

Once Selvig had finished working with the portal generator though, the other minions had been instructed to do something else. _Despite my absence, with their enhanced intellects, and the knowledge I gave them, even mortals like them should have nearly completed the task I assigned to them_.

He might just rule Midgard yet, along with the rest of the Nine Realms. Oh, maybe not openly, but that did not matter. _And their work may prove beneficial against Thanos_ , Loki thought with satisfaction, even as a part of him kept trying to warn himself. Warn him about the implications of how he had initially forgotten about his tools on Earth, and what that might imply about the Mad Titan for whom he had been working for at the time.

 **XXX**

A Second Unknown Location

Hidden away from the world, Loki's puppets continued their Great Work. Their secrecy was owed in two parts to Agent Barton, with the first contribution being how the man's insight into all of SHIELD's operational methods and most of their secrets allowed him to easily hide a base away, especially with the contribution of more slaves he and Loki had assembled.

His amnesia was the second aspect. While both Barton and Dr. Selvig had managed to retain partial memories of what they had experienced under the Master Loki's guidance, it was incomplete. Moreover, Barton had only given advice for the second base, and had never asked what was the purpose was of the information he had provided. The mind controlled spy had still known about and respected the concept of "need to know" after all.

Neither SHIELD nor HYDRA had never been able to find any hint of the existence of a second base, and were unsure if all of the Master's servants had died during Barton's assault on the Helicarrier or not.

Their Master's knowledge was the final key, knowing how to make the base into something Heimdall's roving eyes would pass over with indifference. There was nothing noteworthy for him to see, no diagrams or plans written out, and the final assemblage of the essential components was deliberately left undone. All of which was hidden amongst other projects that were only to mislead the Asgardian watcher.

After all, all the essential details of the Great Work were implanted within their very minds, which had been further expanded by the Tesseract. So slowly but surely they continued to toil.

But there was always someone near the device that Master Loki had completed himself, using his divine wisdom to create a special receiver with which he could communicate with them. Religiously, there was always someone nearby to listen at every hour of the day, waiting for a response from the Master.

They had seen his defeat in the news, but they also knew that he had been returned to Asgard, so the loss was only temporary. Even if Loki was dead, they would still patiently await his call, for that was what they had been ordered to do.

And then they received the signal.

A collection of special phrases upon a specific frequency they had been patiently been monitoring for years. They did not feel excitement or anticipation, only satisfaction that their Master was still working to become their King.

Granted, that specific passcode was for requesting a status update, not a call for action, but it was…comforting. Yes, "comforting" was the best word they were now capable of for expressing their feelings. They would find a way to give a discreet message to the agent on Earth that the Master had informed them about in his communication, or failing that, cobble together their own transmitter that would reach Asgard, and let the Master know they were ready to proceed.

 ** _But what if Loki really means for you to do more?_** a second voice whispered, hidden amongst the shadows of their mental control. **_What if Loki really wants you to begin the project_ now _, to guarantee his success? He would be proud of your loyalty after all_.**

A shiver went down their spines at the sound of the voice, but they all saw the wisdom in such an action. Yes, maybe they should begin full activation of their Great Work. The Master would be proud after all. Right?

And so they finally began bringing together all of the parts for the devices they had painstakingly crafted, born from the genius of Loki and the knowledge within the Infinity Stones.

 **XXX**

 **Author Notes:**

 **Do you know what can be really fun? When someone, a hero or villain, makes a very intricate plan that seems to cover every possible contingency, with a way to deal with every conceivable scenario. They plan so far ahead that they can easily predict every move their enemies make. Aaaaaaand them some hitherto unknown third party comes out of nowhere to start gumming things up. That is what I see those brainwashed troops doing :-)**

 **The part about Vibranium in Wakanda being the only source left in the universe was because of a little annoyance of mine on how none of the supposedly advanced aliens they ever seem to meet in the comics have it or Adamantium. Imagine if the invading spaceships were coated with that? Or had soldiers with it as armour?**

 **-0-**

 **Please Review, and I will get back to you!**


	25. White Queen takes Black Rook

For better or worse, Marvel owns all of this stuff, not me.

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Many thanks to my wonderful Beta, Jesuslovesmarina, who writes some pretty cool stories. Go read them!

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Chapter 25: White Queen takes Black Rook

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 **Two noteworthy alterations I made to previous stuff I feel you should know: for Natasha's battle in Las Vegas is now both more realistic and more difficult for her. Second, instead of it being HYDRA reacting with interest after the Battle of Las Vegas, it is now your friend and mine: Zemo…**

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 _Previously: Loki, disguised as Odin, sets things in motion on Earth, sending both Sif to aid the Avengers in combatting the shadowy forces behind the Hulk-related events, and Lorelei to entrap and take control of the Hulk himself._

 _As for the Bruce and Natasha, the other Avengers have noticed some new tension and distance between the couple._

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 _'What's a girl like you doing in a place like this?'_

 _'A guy did me wrong. There've been a lot of people in my life, all of them fighters. Then there comes this guy, who's not like anyone I've ever met; he doesn't want to be a fighter.'_

-Bruce Banner and Natasha Romanoff, "Avengers: Age of Ultron"

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Avengers Headquarters

Kitchen

Dawn rose over the home of the Avengers, and already many of the occupants were up and about as the heroes prepared for the new day, while the newest shift of SHIELD agents began to work. The more sane individuals just turned over in bed so they were not facing the sunlight.

Steve was unsurprised to find Lady Sif already eating in the kitchen, but the clothes she was wearing were unexpected: all black, with a leather coat, jeans, and a shirt. Belatedly he realized that no one had offered her anything to wear besides what she had arrived in. Seeing his look, she elaborated. "I brought these hides with me, so as to blend in more."

"Do you prefer your armour?" Steve hedged, and she gave a rueful nod. "You can wear it around us then if you want, whatever makes you more comfortable here."

"Thank you," she smiled and grabbed for another Pop Tart. _Thor was correct, we really must bring these back home!_

"Later today we'll have to do some training, so that you can judge what we are capable of, and so that we can work on some team-building exercises," Steve continued as he started making coffee.

"That sounds good," Sif acknowledged, noting it was also a polite invitation for her to show off her own abilities. _Yes, I see what Thor means. He is a leader before a commander._

"So who is coming over?" Sif asked.

"He's the guy in charge of what's becoming Earth's agency for dealing with extraterrestrial stuff," Steve explained. "Although SHIELD's probably still going to do the bulk of it."

"But who besides the Avengers has any experience with such matters?" the Asgardian asked with some confusion.

"And not much experience at that, even with Asgard," someone spoke up, and the middle-aged figure of Doctor Erik Selvig entered the room. "Sorry I'm so early, but something got canceled and I got here faster than I—"

"Friend Selvig!" Sif beamed, recognizing the man from her brief time on Earth when trying to find Thor during Loki's madness. Remembering her manners she gave a quick bow with her head, "I am honoured to be able to properly meet you now that there is no threat to be dealt with."

"And I you," Dr. Erik Selvig returned with his own abbreviated head bob. "Any friend of Thor's is a friend of mine." Then he gave an ironic smirk. "Half the reason they pulled me out of my lab to make me run the agency. And now that Stark's turned down our offer to work for us, there isn't really anyone to properly _talk_ too."

"Don't worry, Banner's around," Steve reassured the man, knowing that the scientist probably wanted someone to talk to about technobabble that should not count as English. "But are you here to greet Sif as an ambassador?"

"Right, right," Selvig muttered, before turning back to the Asgardian, "On behalf of the

Sentient World Observation and Response Department –you can forget that name and just call it SWORD by the way –we welcome you to Earth but to also ask: what are your intentions?"

Straightening her posture and stiffening her tone, Sif looked the man square in the eyes, "My only official duties here on Midgard, on behalf of King Odin, are to support the Avengers until Thor is available again, with an emphasis on helping them uncover and defeat the ones responsible for the Battle of Las Vegas."

"Sounds good," Selvig smiled, relaxing his posture. "If you need anything let us know, but we'll stay out of your hair. I say that as both the Director of SWORD and as a friend."

"I am grateful," she smiled in return.

 **XXX**

Romanoff-Banner Apartment

Bruce slowly made his way around the apartment he shared with his wife, both of them being studiously quiet except for making sure that Laura had all that she needed before the three of them went to join the Avengers for breakfast.

 _Just man up and talk to her about it!_ Bruce thought as he tried to berate himself into action, but still he did nothing. He still did not know what to say, and was afraid of making things worse.

Unknown to him, Natasha was having the same concerns, and was equally frustrated. _He just won't listen to reason!_

They had talked and talked about it, but whenever they started to raise their voices Bruce would just get up and leave their apartment. And so the silence stretched out between them.

 **XXX**

New Avengers Headquarters

Lounge

(Two weeks later)

Bruce glanced up at Wanda as she entered the room, looked back at what he was doing, and then returned his attention to her when he realized she was limping badly. "Twisted my ankle during a run," she explained. "Can you look at it?" she casually asked the man who she had once had attack an innocent city and whom in turn had threatened to murder her.

"Sure," Bruce sincerely answered his friend, while she turned her attention to what he had been watching.

Sif and Natasha were sitting across from each other with a chessboard between them, each of them missing most of their chess pieces, and Wanda had seen far less ominous faces while engaged in mortal combat.

"They've been playing for three hours now," Bruce explained. "Yeah," he added in understanding when he saw her shocked look. "Took Sif an hour to learn how to play it right beforehand, but the two of them've been deadlocked this whole time."

Wanda blinked, "Didn't Natasha beat Vision at chess once?"  
"Twice actually," the synthoid corrected as he entered, throwing Wanda a concerned look. "I'd thought I'd learned how to compensate for her unpredictability, but only learned that she had spent most of the first game leading me astray for the follow-up game."

Wanda blinked. _I feel sorry for Laura growing up. The mind games with her mom will be scary. Sratch that, if she's half as good as Natasha, I feel sorry for Bruce_.

 **XXX**

Special prison block

"So what're we watching today?" Bucky asked from inside his cell.

"A few pop culture movies," Sam explained, "but we're saving the best for when you're cleared and free."

Noting the deliberately optimistic explanation, Steve elaborated, "They say they're best with friends and family. _Star Wars, Lord of the Rings_ , and some others."  
"But you're not allowed out in public until you've seen them," Sam teased, "it's the law."

"So what are we watching?" Then Bucky frowned in confusion at the video cover. "Why _Frozen_?"

"It's in a lot of pop culture, and Disney's plastered it everywhere they can reach," Sam defended.

Not fooled, Steve just smirked. "You just want to watch it, hoping that between being in a secure cell and with a baby to take care of, that Natasha won't catch you and your guilty pleasures."

"I still don't know how she found out about _Big Hero 6_! I was alone at home when I was watching that!" his friend groused.

 **XXX**

Later

Lady Sif nodded in understanding as Bruce Banner finished outlining the latest project he was working on, a collaboration with Dr. Selvig in his scant free time. _Should I mention that Asgard abandoned that line of study because it was too inefficient compared to alternatives, or do I let them figure that out for themselves? What did Thor do in cases like this? If he remembered what we had been taught about this in school…or was paying attention to these scientists…_ Before she could decide however, Bruce paused and reached into his pocket to pull out a vibrating plastic object. Sif's brow furled in puzzlement. "What is that?"

"A cell phone, a personal communication device," he answered, a little distracted. "We've got an Avengers meeting, something SHIELD's concerned about."

 **XXX**

Briefing Room

"SHIELD has a problem," Agent Maria Hill began the meeting.

"You do know that Stark would be having a field day with that, right?" Natasha threw in. "Listing off examples for his own entertainment."

Hill ignored her. "SHIELD's been keeping an eye on various US militia groups for years, but all of a sudden a particular one started receiving significant arms shipments," Hill brought up images of men in US army uniforms handing over suspicious looking boxes to armed civilians, apparently in the middle of the night. "All of those soldiers were once loyal, law abiding men, a few of them have never even gotten a parking ticket, but for some reason they're shown handing over some pretty dangerous stuff, risking serious jail time. A team of agents was sent in a few days ago to retrieve the gear and neutralize the militia group, non-lethally," she added as she saw some of the looks she was getting. "We lost contact with them shortly afterwards."

"You think they've got an Enhanced or Gifted?" Rhodey asked.

"Specifically against this group's credo. In fact, they want to kill them all. Especially the Avengers."

"Charming."

"Satellite coverage?"

Hill shook her head at Romanoff's remark, "Bad quality. Just as the team went in, the militants activated something that's affecting any readings, especially with the bad weather in the area."

"That's pretty suspicious," the super-spy noted, her face not betraying anything. "Something else from the US military maybe?"

"Hence why we're asking the Avengers for help in case they've got something else, but only as back-up. Other agencies have gotten wind of this group, so SHIELD's organized a multi-agency operation to help win back some goodwill after HYDRA."

"I can't go," Wanda informed them with a shrug, "my ankle's still pretty bad."

"It might be best that we hold some of our numbers in reserve," Vision added. "We don't know what the Appendix might attempt next."

"Or someone else," Natasha agreed.

"But if we don't know what we're dealing with here, it might be best to go in strength," Falcon argued.

"I should go to scout it out a bit," Natasha volunteered.

"And SHIELD's sure there's no Enhanced involved?" Steve asked.

"As sure as we can be," Hill promised. "We picked up some of their military suppliers, and they all claim they were paid off when they really needed some fast cash, so nothing suspicious there. Plus given the size of the force we're sending in, we're not concerned."

There was silence as this was considered. "I shouldn't go," Steve concluded after a few moments. "Captain America arresting American extremists could polarize the issue, and the same if we go in with too many big guns."

"I'll go then. I can stay discrete unless it's absolutely necessary," Bruce broke in.

Everyone stared at him, but Natasha was all but glaring, before turning to Captain America, "That sounds great!" she sweetly declared. It was unnatural.

"Uhm, 'kay, then I guess me too, for support," Wilson added.

"Discretion is not my thing, but I can hang back with SHIELD for back-up," Rhodes offered.

Lady Sif looked troubled before speaking up. "As much as I wish to help deal with this crisis, I must continue to prepare myself for the challenges ahead. And with Bruce and Natasha participating, I am confident all will be well," making the couple wince at the reminder of their newfound intergalactic prestige.

 **XXX**

CIA Headquarters

"Any questions, Agent Carter?"

The young blonde woman nodded impassively at her superior. "Why is SHIELD agreeing to work with us on this Op?"

"We received the same intelligence as them at about the same time, and they initiated the offer, probably to try and mend fences. This won't pose any problems, will it?"

Agent Sharon Carter just smiled, "None at all. I'll just have to make sure my cover as an FBI agent is intact."

"That will be handled. You'll be meeting your FBI counterpart tomorrow, and you'll both establish your identity as recent partners. But I was referring to you spying upon SHIELD and the Avengers."

She actually snorted at that. "Again, it won't be a problem. At the absolute least, SHIELD needs a few checks, and there's definitely something going on with the Avengers that they're keeping secret. The question is what." In reality, there were a few issues for her in this, such as how she had formerly been the young and yet rapidly rising SHIELD Agent Sharon Carter, a.k.a. Agent 13.

When Captain America when he had revealed the truth about HYDRA and Project: Insight, she had been one of the first to support him, turning against her "colleagues" to stop their insane plan. Afterwards she had gone to join the CIA, and she was being honest to her boss about how she felt about SHIELD: they had run unchecked for too long, with the world's salvation only coming from a man who was supposed to have been dead, and a lot of luck. Carter still believed in the organization, yet she also knew that it was still a work in progress, still becoming something that could protect the world, but _also_ deserved to.

So she had joined up with the CIA, fudged a few details in her resume while using her talents to hide a few other things, and had quickly earned herself a reputation for a reliable and highly talented field agent. Not only was she still making the world a better safe, with accountability and safeguards in place, but as she rose through the ranks she had greater opportunities to also keep an eye on not just SHIELD, but also the Avengers; being her own form of oversight for them.

While she believed in Captain America, and knew she would follow him into hell itself if need be, her time spying on him had made clear that he was inexperienced and even naïve regarding subterfuge and hidden secrets. It was possible that the recent insanity in what was once Las Vegas, and all of the other rumours she was hearing, were because Rogers was being kept in the dark about some things again. Important things. This way, with this mission, she had a chance to find out for herself.

"So I'm looking forward to getting some answers for that," Carter finished with a confident smile, eager to get to work.

 **XXX**

SHIELD Mobile HQ

The Black Widow's expression was a professional poker face as she took in the assembled agents from both the FBI and ATF, with SHIELD providing the muscle and the people skilled enough at diplomacy to make everything work. In theory the Avengers would not even have to move a muscle, aside from her own recon work.

There were a few familiar faces however, such as Agent 13, Sharon Carter, who had been SHIELD's agent on-hand to watch over Steve and his apartment, and had later been on the frontline with the loyalists who had recognized the true intentions of HYDRA's moles when Steve had later revealed their existence. _But she's supposed to be a SHIELD double-agent within the CIA right now, not FBI. Probably to check in on us for the CIA_ , Natasha mused.

Acting in defiance of how everyone else was avoiding looking at the Avengers right now, Carter stepped forward, with a man also in a bullet-proof vest reluctantly following behind. "This is FBI agent Nick Fox, and I'm his partner, Agent Sharon Carter," the blonde introduced herself, "and of course we all know who you guys are. Nice to meet you!"

"Same here," Bruce smiled, and Natasha twitched her lip up to seem a little friendlier in turn.

"Surprised to see you coming along," Carter continued, looking at Bruce, "I thought you were more of the lab guy?" _When you aren't a figure of mass destruction_ , was the unspoken implication.

"Just trying something new," he calmly told her, while fastening on his sidearm a little awkwardly. Carter also took note of how while he was staying by the Black Widow, there was some distance between them and a sense of awkwardness, _Just how cohesive are the Avengers really?_ she wondered.

"Cool. Now, from what the techies are telling us, it looks like the militants are scattered throughout the compound, but far enough apart from each other that we should be able to sweep through easily."

"I thought I was supposed to go first?" Natasha politely asked.

Carter shrugged and gestured at a man in his mid-forties, who was apparently running the show. "Change of plans."

 **XXX**

Avengers Headquarters

Wanda smiled and cooed at Laura Romanoff-Banner. The little girl was growing up so fast, but was still so, so, sooo adorable!

Laura was running around now, getting into everything she could and keeping everyone on guard. Who knew where she would end up next? Gun safety was now a matter of life and death (their own lives that is, not the kid's, if Natasha found one unsecured). Fortunately, all of the New Avengers were all very fit and able to keep up with her. Except Wanda. _More time in the gym_ , she promised herself as she pulled aside a chair to get around the couch after the baby, _little less time on psychic powers_. Of course she refused to use her abilities around Laura. While powerful and versatile, she dared not risk their use around someone so fragile, especially for such a needless reason.

Despite how tired she was, Wanda could not remember being happier, except during her visits to the Barton farm. _You'll have a future, Laura,_ she promised. _The childhood and life that I, Natasha, Bruce, and the others never had. The life that was denied to us because powerful men believed that they could do whatever they wanted._ While Stark had not personally launched those missiles at her hometown, it had been his corrupt business partner that had made it possible. _The life Steve almost missed out on if not for those powerful men enacting the New Deal to save the economy and not improving it since._ In Sokovia, Wanda had grown up with wealthy and healthy men preaching about equality and the greater good to starving masses. She _knew_ what sort of support a government, the powerful, should provide its people and those under them.

With a quick burst she snatched up a giggling Laura and looked the little girl in her eyes. I promise you, she swore in Sokovian, we will do everything to help you grow up in peace. Not the peace of holding a gun to people's heads; but _real_ peace.

And Wanda chose to believe that Laura's bobbing head meant she understood, and was thanking her "aunt."

 **XXX**

Militant Compound

Later

The various agents were slowly moving their way through the militant compound, but so far everyone was calling in: "No contact."

"Something's not right," Carter hissed as she and her partner and their own squad swept through the quiet buildings. Seemingly endless rows of drab buildings with bits of garbage and junk equipment scattered about, but no sign of anyone living here.

"Agent Carter, channel five," a voice broke in from one of the ATF operatives, signaling that he was calling her on a radio frequency that the Avengers had not been given the encryption for. "I just saw Dr. Banner. Isn't he supposed to be back in the rear?"

Frowning, the ex-SHIELD agent almost contacted the Avengers themselves to ask what they were playing at, but stopped herself. "He's probably afraid we're too far ahead to help us if needed," and in fairness everyone _did_ want as much space between themselves and the Hulk to get out of the way if it became necessary. "Keep your distance, but keep an eye on him."

 **XXX**

A finger brushed against Falcon's cheek from behind, and then he knew clarity.

 **XXX**

They never even saw it coming. **  
**Cracks of gunfire shatter the silence, and Agent Fox goes down. Carter snapped around, gun raised, with only careful training keeping her from panic firing even as the rest of her team dropped unmoving. The shooter was Bruce Banner.

Unable to get away, she rushed forward while he was still adjusting his aim and plucked the gun from his hand. He punched her. Hard.

"Banner! What's wrong with you!?" she snapped, but was suddenly on the defensive against the middle-aged man. _Aikido, along with some other training,_ she automatically processed, _but how's he this good!? He's just a scientist, a nerd, he—ah, right, and survived on the run for years. Guess he's tougher than he looks._

The two fighters danced back and forth, trading blows, with Carter at a serious disadvantage: if this was indeed the real Banner, then she dared not hurt him. Dared not make him angry. Dared—

He broke her wrist.

Got her arm into a lock that was textbook SHIELD and snapped it while she was distracted. _We're almost dead anyways_ , she hissed to herself and drew a knife with her good hand. "Why, Banner!? Or is it really even you!?" she demanded of him.

"Oh, it's me," he reassured the CIA agent with a look that screamed _fanatic_ to her, "and I'm honestly sorry about this, but she told me to show her what I'm capable of. I hope you don't mind."

"Great," she grunted as he ducked back under another swing, "mind control. So I've got to get you angry."

"Yes, well, problem with that," and then he kicked her knee and made her hit the earth. "I _can't_ get angry anymore."

The last thing she saw was his fist.

 **XXX**

SHIELD Mobile HQ

"Sit rep," Rhodes ordered as he stood in his War Machine suit.

"All clear," Wilson's voice cut it over the radio. "Dumb luck took out the original SHIELD team after they'd almost handled it themselves. They're alive, and these idiots were still trying to get their act together. Frankly, they didn't even need us."

 **XXX**

Militant Compound

Bruce was serene as he straddled the downed SHIELD agent and beat at the man's face despite the struggling attempts to make him stop.

Nothing. No drugs, no meditation, nothing, had ever granted him such inner peace. _Not even Laura and Natasha?_ a voice tried to ask, but was too muffled.

He remembered his ongoing fight with her. No argument, no discussion, just letting it stew between them these last few weeks. He did not have to worry about that anymore, did he?

The desperate agent finally started to actually fight back now, weakly flailing at Bruce to make him stop, but pain meant nothing to Bruce. His tolerance and self-control were too well honed. Pain was just another trigger for anger after all. For _It_.

 _But I don't have to worry about that anymore,_ Bruce reminded himself with rapture. _The Goddess said that I don't have to use the Other Guy! That I should just stay happy and calm!_

So he kept on hitting.

Finally, the agent stopped moving, but the doctor within him made a quick diagnosis and confirmed that it was nothing too serious. _And if it is, then maybe he just isn't worth serving the Goddess Lorelei_ , he concluded with some mild regret.

 **XXX**

At the exact same moment, Natasha was trying to get her radio to work. Something was jamming short-range communications. She was more worried however about how Falcon was just lazily flying in circles above the base, displaying none of his military-ingrained caution. Also, none of the militants were firing at him, even though the man should be safely out of the radio interference. Worst of all, her intuition was sending every emergency signal it could to her. _Wilson's been compromised_ , she concluded. _Probably parts of SHIELD too, enough that the incomplete satellite reports and other details weren't given enough thought, or were faked up to be made more believable. Probably the request for inter-agency cooperation too, to help convince us not to send too many Avengers. This was a trap baited just for us._

Whoever was involved likely had some way of altering people's minds, but given SHIELD's previous history with Loki, the thralls were probably ordered to develop their own cover for their actions to allay suspicion. Even those army men who had "sold" the weapons had likely been commanded to deliberately make large purchases beforehand so that when interrogated, they could claim they had needed the money. When the militants had offered them a "deal," that had helped strength the deception. Made everyone more willing to walk in, thinking they were in control.

 _Still, it all seems so crude and rushed, even if mind control was used. If SHIELD hadn't been so overconfident…_

She immediately headed off to find Bruce, when a beautiful woman turned the corner. Long, rich red-gold hair, perfect figure, and a light grace as she moved that almost disguised a posture that spoke of being a trained fighter. Despite this, being dressed in military fatigues like the other militants, almost gave her a hint of anonymity.

Natasha shot her.

Three bullets bounced off her forehead.

"Asgardian?" Natasha asked, catching the subtle expressive cues to confirm this, even as the stranger just smiled.

"What gave it away?"

"Just a hunch," Natasha lied, having recognized that same look that she had seen in Thor, Loki, and Sif. Not even the benevolent ones had been able to hide the presence granted from having lived for centuries, or even millennia, with all of the experiences and challenges they had encountered and overcome. Despite all of their efforts, there was always a hint of that when they were engaging with those who were both far younger and far more fragile. Lorelei even had the same smug arrogance and superiority in her gait as Loki had.

Whipping out her batons, glowing blue with power she struck at the woman, but the Asgardian's arrogant smirk never faltered as she sidestepped from each blow. _She's received training_ , Natasha coldly listed off, _she's reading my moves and moving faster than I can to dodge around. She's also smart enough to not be hit by an unknown weapon_.

The backhand to the chest lifted the Black Widow off her feet and threw her backwards. Rolling as she hit the ground despite the pain, she was up again, weapons still firmly clasped.  
"You did better than expected, for a mortal," the stranger praised as if she were doing Natasha a great service. "You anticipated me, and were already moving back to lighten the blow." Then she went on the offensive.

Sparring matches against Steve came to the forefront as the Widow ducked and dodged around attacks, using her batons to deflect attacks, but the alien barely reacted to the electrical bites after the first shock. _She's backing me towards that wall_ , the Avenger's situational awareness told her.

And then a fist got through her defenses and then everything went black.

 **XXX**

"Not bad, but not what I was expecting," the sorceress Lorelei mused aloud. "What in the Nine Realms _does_ Thor see in this planet?"

Dragging the last Avenger by her collar, Lorelei turned the corner to find the Banner straightening up, another downed SHIELD operative at his feet. The rest of the elite squad was sprawled around him, proving that the man was indeed formidable. For a mortal. "I'm impressed that you could do so much in this puny form," she admitted.

The Banner shrugged with modesty, blushing a little at the attention he was heaping upon him, "Natasha's been training me since she stayed at the Avengers Tower. Said it was important that I could defend myself, and I taught myself Aikido while I was on the run." Never once did he glance at his wife who had been dropped on the ground.

"Have they all been accounted for?"

"Yes, except for the men who were sent back with Falcon."

"Good. If there are any other women around," the only ones immune to her powers, "bring them with you, I want them to see this."

 **XXX**

SHIELD Mobile HQ

"When are the others coming back?" Rhodes asked as Wilson joined him and the others, a team of other soldiers following behind him.

Falcon just shrugged, "They had some spy work to handle and Bruce is just checking up on the SHIELD agents, but all's good. Felt like I'd come back since there was nothing else for me to do."

"Uh-huh, alright," Rhodes agreed, wondering why something seemed off. All he knew for sure was that his gut was sending off silent warning bells, and he was deathly aware of how he was no longer wearing his suit. Something about one of the technicians saying that the War Machine outfit would distract the other agents while working, especially since the crisis was past…

 **XXX**

Militia Compound

Lorelei preened as the female mortals slowly came around, realizing how they were tied up on the floor, seeing the Banner unhindered and sitting on a chair in front of them in the middle of the room, and taking in the scant bare walls. She particularly enjoyed taunting them with how all their weapons and equipment were off to the side, out of reach and useless even if they could get ahold of them.

After a few moments she deigned to take notice of the redhead's begging towards the Banner, the one her information had labeled as the Banner's mate, the Black Widow. _Delicious_.

"He can't hear you, you know," Lorelei said with mock sadness, "I told him to only pay notice to my voice and requests. That way there is less that can upset him. In fact, I've done all I can for him, to ensure that he doesn't get angry anymore, and you love me for that, don't you Banner?"

"Yes I do, Lorelei," the grey haired man breathed out, with the redhead paling at this. _Always so satisfying._

Still, best not to spend too long on fun and games. After all, SHIELD would soon have some inkling that something was wrong, and then Sif would soon arrive. The last time that the Enchantress had escaped from Asgardian prison, the organization had been crucial in helping Odin's dog hunt her down and imprison her again. Now was the time to act.

"You know," Lorelei said as she gently as she made her way over to where the Banner was sitting down, "I'm sure you can guess where it goes from here. Me and this lovely specimen leave and have the time of our lives," ignoring that glares of hatred from the Black Widow, as her voice became increasingly gleeful, "and I hold control over the most powerful mortal on this world. I can even take him to other worlds; imagine what we could accomplish!"

Then the joy fell from her eyes and only cruelty remained.

"But that's not going to happen," she hissed. "Whoever sent me here, that's what they want! But I? I am Lorelei! And I am no one's pawn!"

"No!" Natasha gasped. "No, don't do it! Please, please don't do it! I'll do anything! Just not that! _Please!_ "

Lorelei gave her a look of bare approval. "So you figured it out. Very good. For a mortal."

"If you just leave, we'll forget about this, all of it," the Black Widow begged, tears threatening to escape, "No one has to know. Asgard won't know, they're too busy right now! Please!"

"I'm sorry, but I really can't. Not after what's been done to me. Whoever it is want's him alive, to use for their own ends," and then Lorelei traced her fingers lightly over Bruce's face, his eyelids dropping with bliss, "and frankly I can't guarantee that I could control his other side."

Natasha was frantically rocking back and forth, visibly struggling to break free of her bonds.

"It's a pity that you didn't bring more males with you, and that the others are unconscious. I don't usually do this sort of thing myself," Loreli admitted in a conspiring manner, "but for something like this, it's best to do it yourself." Leaning over she whispered in Bruce's ear, "Are you still calm, pet? Happy?"

"Yes, Lorelei."

"Bruce! No! Get angry! Get angry!"

"He can't, he really can't. So he can't heal from this."

Serenely Lorelei reached over, put her hands on either side of Bruce's head, enjoying the sound of him moaning in pleasure at her touch, and then she crushed his head like a ripe tomato.

 **XXX**

 **Author Notes:**

 **I know that in Captain America: Civil War it appeared that the Avenger's base only had Avengers in it, but I liked the implied idea from the end of the Age of Ultron that SHIELD agents were working there, or "former" SHIELD agents now working for Stark Industries ;-) at the very least. Basically to take up support roles, and back-up and everything. Who cleans the place? And no, after AoU I doubt they would accept robots or want Vision to do it all :-P**

 **-0-**

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 **"The Definition of Insanity" by The Darkness Factor**

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 **Please Review!**


	26. Black Queen takes Satisfaction

For better or worse, Marvel owns all of this stuff, not me.

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Many thanks to my wonderful Beta, Jesuslovesmarina, who writes some pretty cool stories. Go read them!

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 **Brand new Brutasha community that may interest readers:**

 **community/HulkXBlack-Widow-Brutasha/126078/**

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Chapter 26: Black Queen takes Satisfaction

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 _Previously: After an incident that involved Thanos, the Guardians of the Galaxy, and another, unnamed, Infinity Stone, Loki posing as Odin began mobilizing the might of Asgard to end the threat of the Mad Titan._

 _Meanwhile on Earth, responding to SHIELD's request for backing up a joint agency attack on a American militant extremist compound, the Avengers dispatched Falcon, Black Widow, War Machine, and Dr. Bruce Romanoff-Banner to help. Unfortunately, it was a trap set by Lorelei, a sorceress who can bend the wills of males to her own. She quickly ensnared the Falcon and Bruce, although she is unaware that the one who both freed her and sent her on this mission is Loki._

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 _"Drown me! Roast me! Hang me! Do whatever you please," said Brer Rabbit. "Only please, Brer Fox, please don't throw me into the briar patch."_

 _"The briar patch, eh?" said Brer Fox. "What a wonderful idea! You'll be torn into little pieces!"_

-"Brer Rabbit and the Tar Baby."

A Georgia Folktale retold by S.E. Schlosser

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Militia Compound

Lorelei preened as the female mortals slowly came around, realizing how they were tied up on the floor, seeing the Banner unhindered and sitting on a chair in front of them in the middle of the room, and taking in the scant bare walls. She particularly enjoyed taunting them with how all their weapons and equipment were off to the side, out of reach and useless even if they could get ahold of them.

After a few moments she deigned to take notice of the redhead's begging towards the Banner, the one her information had labeled as the Banner's mate, the Black Widow. _Delicious_.

"He can't hear you, you know," Lorelei said with mock sadness, "I told him to only pay notice to my voice and requests. That way there is less that can upset him. In fact, I've done all I can for him, to ensure that he doesn't get angry anymore, and you love me for that, don't you Banner?"

"Yes I do, Lorelei," the grey haired man breathed out, with the redhead paling at this. _Always so satisfying._

Still, best not to spend too long on fun and games. After all, SHIELD would soon have some inkling that something was wrong, and then Sif would soon arrive. The last time that the Enchantress had escaped from Asgardian prison, the organization had been crucial in helping Odin's dog hunt her down and imprison her again. Now was the time to act.

"You know," Lorelei said as she gently as she made her way over to where the Banner was sitting down, "I'm sure you can guess where it goes from here. Me and this lovely specimen leave and have the time of our lives," ignoring that glares of hatred from the Black Widow, as her voice became increasingly gleeful, "and I hold control over the most powerful mortal on this world. I can even take him to other worlds; imagine what we could accomplish!"

Then the joy fell from her eyes and only cruelty remained.

"But that's not going to happen," she hissed. "Whoever sent me here, that's what they want! But I? I am Lorelei! And I am no one's pawn!"

"No!" Natasha gasped. "No, don't do it! Please, please don't do it! I'll do anything! Just not that! _Please!_ "

Lorelei gave her a look of bare approval. "So you figured it out. Very good. For a mortal."

"If you just leave, we'll forget about this, all of it," the Black Widow begged, tears threatening to escape, "No one has to know. Asgard won't know, they're too busy right now! Please!"

"I'm sorry, but I really can't. Not after what's been done to me. Whoever it is want's him alive, to use for their own ends," and then Lorelei traced her fingers lightly over Bruce's face, his eyelids dropping with bliss, "and frankly I can't guarantee that I could control his other side."

Natasha was frantically rocking back and forth, visibly struggling to break free of her bonds.

"It's a pity that you didn't bring more males with you, and that the others are unconscious. I don't usually do this sort of thing myself," Loreli admitted in a conspiring manner, "but for something like this, it's best to do it yourself." Leaning over she whispered in Bruce's ear, "Are you still calm, pet? Happy?"

"Yes, Lorelei."

"Bruce! No! Get angry! Get angry!"

"He can't, he really can't. So he can't heal from this."

Serenely Lorelei reached over, put her hands on either side of Bruce's head, enjoying the sound of him moaning in pleasure at her touch, and then she crushed his head like a ripe tomato.

 **XXX**

SHIELD Mobile HQ

"C'mon, Wilson, fight it!" War Machine urged as he and the other SHIELD agents were being escorted at gunpoint by Falcon and the other agents who had come back with him.

While the gun professionally trained upon them from a rock-steady hand was unnerving, it was Falcon's eyes that were the most unnerving. Cold indifference would have been preferable to the fanaticism in the Avenger's eyes, which spoke of how he knew that whatever he did in the service of his Mistress, it was for a greater good

"Sorry about this man, but you'll understand soon enough."

 **XXX**

Avengers Headquarters

Kitchen

"No, no, it's quite good," Sif hastily reassured Steve, "but, it is more for children."

The humans stared in disbelief at the heaping of hot sauce and spices on her meat. "Really?" Wanda finally asked, carefully keeping Laura's eagerly reaching hands _away_ from the seasonings that just screamed _HOT!_

"Thor never seemed to mind," Steve put in, carefully sounding curious and not insulting.

She just shrugged. "It's always been Thor's preference with seasonings to go for something more mild, not that there's nothing wrong with it. That's just how he is."

Smiling good naturedly, Steve finished off his own, more lightly spiced, piece of meat. "Well," he said after swallowing, "maybe we can go find some stronger stuff? It would be a good outing. We can take the Quinjet with our gear aboard so that we can still deploy if something comes up."

After a chorus of affirmation, the Avengers started planning out where to go shopping.

 **XXX**

Asgard

Heimdall dutifully cast his gaze across the cosmos, searching for some clue for fighting Thanos the Mad Titan, confident that the Lady Sif would keep Midgard secure.

 **XXX**

Nova Corps Empire

In space

"No doubt about it, kids," Rocket Raccoon moaned, although there was a touch of awe in his voice, "the Nova Corps is bringing together its big guns."

Over the planet a fleet of massive spaceships were assembling, bristling with weaponry that could lay waste to entire worlds, confirming that the Nova Empire was indeed mobilizing for war.

Drax the Destroyer looked at his companions in confusion, "Why did we not see such defenses protecting Xandar from Ronan? Each of those warships appears far stronger than his own was."

Gamora stepped forward. "Because they didn't realize how powerful his ship was," she answered in a grim voice as she pondered the possibilities before them. "It's impossible to patrol the entirety of an empire so vast, so keep most of their ships on their boards or on set patrols that can mobilize towards multiple planets. This means relying upon early detection systems, smaller and more numerous randomized patrols, and spies in other nations. Thanos gave Ronan intelligence about all of this, and he only hit the weaker colonies so the Nova Corps never realized how dangerous he really was. Thanos also gave him a sophisticated cloaking device, but one that could only function for a short while at a time."

Drax nodded as he absorbed this information, not yet fully understanding.

"Wonder how _sophisticated_ it really was?" the leader of the Guardians of the Galaxy, Peter Quill, a.k.a. Star-Lord, idly mused aloud.

"What'cha mean?" Rocket asked.

"The Nova's might've gotten enough out of that wreck, or just from scanning him during the fight, to beat that trick," their resident master at sleights of hand and deception replied. "So how much you wanna bet that Thanos has an even better way to stay hidden that hasn't show yet?"

"Thanos must die," Drax grounded out, determined to kill the one he ultimately held responsible for the murder of his family.

Star-Lord straightened up and looked at the others.

Gamora wanted Thanos dead too, for killing her family and her world and then forcing her to be an assassin and his 'daughter.'

Rocket was willing to go along with it too, since Gamora and Drax were friends and Thanos was as bad as it came. Although like Quill, he also wanted to do it in both a relatively safe manner and in a way that would reap some profit.

That said, while they were both greedy, they still had a conscience, and their recent encounter with Thanos' latest scheme and _another_ Infinity Stone made it clear to their pragmatic sides that action had to be taken. Running away would not do any good against the Mad Titan if he was armed with even a single one of those _skrakin_ nuisances.

"I am Groot!"

And there was the opinion of their littlest member throwing in his vote!

"Alright, we think Xandar is getting ready to mix it up with somebody," Peter declared. "It's not the Kree since they wouldn't have pulled most of the Third and Fifth Fleets from their border with them if it was. And given what's been happening, we're all hoping it's against Thanos. Let's get some more information first, and the Nova Corps is where to start. Plus," he added with a grin and a glance at Rocket, "we can 'pick up' some nice parts for the ship, if you take my meaning…"

Drax just nodded with smile, glad to see action being taken, and trusting his friends to come up with a worthy plan. Gamora rolled her eyes at how her friends were still acting like lowly thieves, and risking ruining any credit they had with the Nova Corps, yet conceded that they needed some more intelligence before proceeding. As for Rocket, he was just cackling and wringing his hands in anticipation, while Peter leaned over to put on some music.

 **XXX**

Deep space

Nidavellir spaceship

Thor strode through the darkened halls and entered the massive command center of the Dwarven spaceship. _They always like to build things oversized,_ he reminded himself.

The Dwarves were of the Nidavellir, one of the Nine Realms, and even Asgard's advances paled before the technological prowess of these miniature immortals.

"Ah, Prince Thor, I hope you had a good rest," the ship's chief Dwarf politely asked, his attention clearly more focused upon whatever reports his implants were projecting before his vision, especially given the distinctive blinking that was characteristic of most of their race. They were such fiendish inventors that even they craved having immediate access to a computer system where they could look up information or put together designs as fast as they could twitch their eyes. While the system was fully capable of interpreting the subtle gestures, it was still not connected directly to their minds, the creators knowing full well the dangers of such a cybernetic system.

The few who lacked such implants tended to be their diplomats, to ensure there were no cultural faux paus during interspecies communications when their ambassadors started staring into space when a clever idea struck them. Fortunately, Thor was well familiar with their race, and was not offended. It was just the way with Dwarves, so it would be pointless to be upset about it. _And when in Rome, walk around naked, except for a toga, as Stark would say_.

Looking around at what little was visible from the scant displays, Thor made some vague comments that he had enjoyed his sleep, and asked how the chieftain was.

"Good, good," the Dwarf muttered. "Alright, we're nearly there."

"I admit I'm surprised that you chose to build this shipyard so far out," Thor commented.

"Well, after the Bifrost came down we decided there wouldn't be any harm in making a few new fallback plans. Besides, it was fun to do."

"Of course," Thor agreed, vowing again that Stark should never meet the Dwarves, especially if Pepper was unavailable to monitor the inventor 24/7; he would get along too well with them. _Although at least when the Dwarves build something for the sake of building, they exercise some common sense and basic wisdom, and know to investigate and prepare against any mistakes or threats…_

"This solar system once had an abundance of raw materials that were of value," Thor noted the past tense, "and no sign intelligent life would ever develop there, which was nice. Too harsh for most mortal races to colonize, and just enough out of the way for everyone else to leave it alone. Once you mentioned Thanos to our King, he sent word that full production and conversion was to commence." Now the chieftain became more serious. "In fact, we're depending upon you to help us sell this concept to other races of the Realms. If we're finally going to have it out with the Mad Titan, then we're going to need a lot more of these ships, and frankly we'd rather not just conquer places to get the resources. We've all seen that you've gotten better with that diplomatic stuff in such a short time," he added, somewhat pointedly, although there was a smile in his voice.

"I understand," Thor reassured, "and I'll do what I can with what I've learned."

"Alright, first planet coming up," and a holoscreen appeared mid-air, depicting an approaching gas giant with numerous large moons. A little louder the chieftain then called out, "Alright boys, show the Prince of Asgard what we've got fir 'em!"

Around the gas giant engines lit up, lines of light played out across hulls that appeared decorative but were byproducts of essential functions, and massive weapons slid out of concealed hatches.

They were bulky and ugly, hardly fitting for such an ancient race, but with Thanos on the move time was now a precious commodity. Moreover, such criticisms were completely overshadowed by the sheer size of the approach craft.

Thor nodded in approval as the moons of the gas giant deployed around him, having now been converted into massive warships, with more from in-system coming to join them. "Do you have a name for them?"

"Not as yet, Prince."

"Well then," Thor grinned, "I would like to name them the _Death Star_ -class."

"Oh? Is that a reference to something?"

"Yes, something else that was no moon," he chuckled, but deep down inside he knew that this was still not enough, that they would need more than this fleet to be victorious.

 **XXX**

Earth

Militia Camp

Lorelei screamed in agony as she threw back her head and stumbled backwards, desperately trying to shake the steaming blood and gore off of her hands.

"Oh I'm sorry," Natasha playfully sang as she stood up, the rope falling down around her, and the tears gone from her eyes as if they had never been. "I would've stopped you, but it took a little too long to get untied."

Agent Carter was not fooled however, no matter how much that woman was smiling, the CIA agent knew that if she ever saw that look in the Black Widow's eyes directed at her, she would be dead before dawn. And it would be a relief from madness and pain.

"You knew!?" Lorelei hissed through her pain.

"Why else do you think I was goading you on? Do you want to hear a secret?" Natasha continued, mockingly mimicking the Asgardian's conspiring tone from earlier. "You're not the first person to think of that. But the funny fact is that the first time it happened it was an accident." And with that she walked over to Bruce's headless body, and it was then that everyone saw that it was still actively twitching on the ground in a distinctively unnatural manner. Unfazed by the blood that was now visibly eating away at the cement ground, the spy deftly reached down to pull the supposed corpse upright so that it was now almost sitting, and everyone could now see the greenish twinge to the skin and how the body was slowly growing, straining against what was left of his clothes even as they were dissolving.

Carter could only stare in speechless horror.

"But his power is triggered by his rage," Lorelei snarled as the with hate and pain, and now fear as she realized she may have to fight the Hulk. "He doesn't have a brain to get angry _with!_ "

Ignoring her, Natasha continued her lecture, "SHIELD was already monitoring him while he was on the run, and caught him being decapitated in a freak automobile accident, too fast for the brain to even know it was off his head, yet the next thing we knew the Big Guy was still out to play."

Her eyes glinted as a sultry smile spread across her lips. "But I can still kill you for it."

With a flash of silver, the concealed knife she had palmed flew true into a particularly bloody spot on Lorelei's hand.

"GAAAAH!" the Asgardian screamed as the blade sunk unhindered right into her flesh, the bulletproof skin having been burnt off, and Natasha was already sliding along the ground towards the rest of her equipment.

Bursting through a wall, Lorelei moved to get some distance and gather her wits. Swiftly rearmed, Natasha stopped only to soothingly rub her hands against Bruce's, mindful of the blood that was still eating into the floor and resting against his skin. In defiance of all sense, he somehow seemed to recognize her and the twitching eased and the green colour faded. _Good_ , she thought. They could not be sure that the Hulk would be immune to this new form of mind control, and given how the status of the militants and other agents was unknown, they did not want a Code Green right now.

Which meant it was up to the Black Widow.

Which was perfectly fine. This was her job after all.

Attempted murder of her husband, and actual assault with lethal force on US and SHIELD agents aside, there was an immensely powerful psychotic serial killer on the loose. To help clean off her bloody ledger, because she was an Avenger, and because _yes_ , despite what others thought she did _care_ about all of the people that would be killed and harmed if that witch got away free, the Black Widow would stop her.

She was an assassin, and she never let her prey get away.

 **XXX**

Distracted by the acidic pain, Lorelei could not move fast at first, even being forced to stop for a short bit to try and assess the state of her wounds.

When she got moving again, she only had another minute before the first ambush.

A rumbling sound made her turn her head to see a moving vehicle heading right for her, the red-haired mortal driving it. _Fool_ , Lorelei thought smugly, bringing up a foot to plant right into the engine. At that speed and with that mass the attack might actually hurt her, but it would hardly leave a bruise and the impact from her kick would kill the mortal.

 _Fool_ , Natasha thought as she rolled out of the jeep a few seconds before impact and snapped up her gun in one motion to shoot the tanks of gasoline she had loaded inside. _Apparently she hasn't been on Earth long enough to realize our 'primitive' fuel is flammable_.

Not entirely a fool, Lorelei jumped away as she saw Natasha doing the same, but the explosion still picked her up and threw her into a wall, dazing her. Her vision reasserted itself enough to see Natasha pull out a long looking weapon from concealment. _How'd she know it was–_ Then the rocket-propelled grenade took her right in the chest.

Dropping the weapon Natasha was already moving, refusing to believe it would be that easy. If the Asgardian just kept lying there, the Black Widow would set her hair on fire to be sure she was not faking it. _How nice of these militants to leave such useful tools around_ , she cheerfully noted.

The scream of hate confirmed her fears.

 **XXX**

"I should have killed her when I had the chance!" Lorelei snarled aloud as she moved, trying to manage the effort to move at a faster pace without jostling her hands too much with the movement.

" _Yes, you should have_."

Whirling around, the Asgardian stumbled at the sudden shock of the movement, trying in vain to find who was speaking.

" _But you were pulling your punches the whole time. That's why I let you capture me before you decided to play it serious and prevent me from preparing my anti-Asgaridan tricks. Thor even helped me with them._ "

Twisting, Lorelei finally found the source, a miniature device stuck to the back of her shirt, having stubbornly endured its recent abuse. It had probably been thrown on while she was…repositioning herself…after being injured by the Banner's unforeseen ability. _And if it can send words, then it may be possible for her to track it! That's how she found me! How she prepared that weapon ahead of time!_ The agony of using her bloody fingers to rip it off the cloth almost made her see white, but she started moving again, willing her body to heal faster.

"You shouldn't have gloated," she muttered unheard at the mortal, dong a quick check for anymore tracers. "Now, before the Hulk comes…" and she continued on her way.

 **XXX**

Back with the prisoners

Flecks of burning flesh and blood melted the steaming floor around Bruce, even as bone and muscles grew out of his neck, his "corpse" oddly stiff with his arms actively bracing his torso upright.

Gagging at the sight and smell, Agent Carter struggled to free herself from her bonds. _I'm going to have nightmares about this_ , she knew with resignation, trying not to wonder if the fumes from melting cement were poisonous. _But it appears that Banner may truly be impossible to kill, and maybe also impossible to capture since the healing process or transformation would destroy whatever is around him_.

 **XXX**

Back with the battle

A few minutes later

Stealthily, Lorelei limped between the buildings, pausing at the sound of loud male voices.

 _I can use them against her, and then make her beg for death! At_ _the hands of her lover!_ she promised with hate, even as something started to niggle at the back of her mind.

She cautiously approached the men, but when she peeked around the corner all she saw was an open space with was a blinking device from which sounds were being played, and she belatedly realized it was a recording of conversations set on repeat. _Trap!_ and she whirled around to escape. Too late.

Natasha rolled down and under the instinctive blow, halting her motion to pull at a seemingly random piece of string. On guard, Lorelei hesitated to determine the nature of this newest trick, when she belatedly realized that there was something around her neck.

Nearly instantaneously, all thought was driven from Lorelei's mind as she was yanked through the air and dragged up the side of building beside her, pulled along by a thin wire around her neck like a leash.

Over the roof she went and down to the ground where another powerful jeep was providing the force that was garroting her for all its engine's worth. _You might still be bulletproof, you might even be tough enough to not be cut by that_ , Natasha thought with a smirk, _but you still need to breathe_.

Then she slid back into the shadows. After all, she still needed some time to finish her work, and it would be best if the Asgardian was as weakened and distracted as possible.

 **XXX**

Gasping for breath, Lorelei desperately pulled herself forward by the wire to grab the jeep with hands that had suffered far too much. She ripped off the bumper, freeing herself as she finally slid to a halt. Greedily sucking in air and shaking with agony, she forced herself to stand, before picking up the jeep and throwing it away in rage.

Quivering and panting, she hunched over in pain at the pressure she had _idiotically_ put on her fingers, her pure rage making her forget the horrible mess they were in. Fighting through the sensation, she fumbled to remove the wire from her neck. When she finally did, she saw blood – _blood!_ —on the wire.

 _She cut me! If I hadn't yanked the wire off the jeep when I did…No! I can't stay. Others will be coming. I must get away!_

Stumbling, she continued towards her closest escape route: a tunnel the militants had dug that would lead to a vehicle and waiting driver. _But I will have my revenge!_ Lorelei promised. Once out of range of the 'radio' jammer, the actual machine was too far away, she would order the Avenger and SHIELD operatives under her thrall to kill everyone near them and then come and join her. She would escape and plan anew. _Or maybe flee, taking those men with me as consolation, for now Sif will be after me too._

Wincing with each step and still needing deep breaths, she finally made it to a specific building and opened the door.

Something swung down from inside right into her face and white light consumed her vision even as something as loud as the grand bells of Asgard rang in her ears. Stumbling back, fire and pressure stabbed at her as multiple explosions went off, throwing her mind into a panic.

Safely behind Lorelei, Natasha lugged another improvised fire bomb at her target, glad to see her gamble was paying off. Long experience had proven that most humans reacted poorly to the prospect of being burnt alive, and while Thor had always been very hard to hurt, his reaction a few times proved that even Asgardians disliked the prospect of being set aflame.

Moreover, Natasha had read all of the analyses of the Battle of Puente Antiguo. While Thor had easily bested the Destroyer, his four companions had clearly struggled against the weaponized armour, implying that Asgard's royal family was far more powerful than other Asgardians. The mounting damage overtaking Lorelei was proof of this.

"How!?" the Enchantress screamed over the mounting pain, "How'd you do this!? You're just a mortal! A powerless one!"

"When you touched Bruce's blood you got infected with the radiation, and that's easy for my gear to track. I just planted that other tracker for you to find to keep you from figuring that out," Natasha answered, deliberately unnerving her target. "As slow as you were going, it was easy to anticipate you and find your little bolt hole, because of course someone like you would have one, and wait."

And because a stand-up fight would have been suicide. Better to do hit and run to hurt her physically and mentally, to drive her even faster towards the trap that Natasha kept running back to touch up more.

Blindly Lorelei leapt at the voice, but it was just another planted recording device, having anticipated this conversation as well. _Stall, my eyes and ears will still recover fast_. Struggling to regain her composure, "I can provide you with the secrets of Asgardian technology! That which neither Thor nor Sif would give you!"

Then Natasha hit her on her precious 'godly' head.

And it hurt.

Naked, burnt, deaf and blind, Lorelei nearly fell to her knees with this new burst of pain as her nerves screamed for mercy, and then her vision finally returned enough to get a glimpse of the Black Widow. Long cables trailed from somewhere to the bright blue batons that were glowing in her hands, with far more intensity than she had sensed before when she had captured the mortal. Another fierce blow upside the head sent her stumbling as the real Natasha finally spoke, "So you knew that Sif was here, did you? Thanks for that, wonder how many others knew. Might help narrow down who's behind this."

Like a panther the Black Widow stuck with her now super-charged electric batons, which had already been upgraded by her husband to help fight even the toughest of the empowered. Casually she danced under the increasingly clumsy counter blows as she continued to beat the Asgardian down.

Gathering the last of her strength, Lorelei tried to leap and rush the mortal, but missed and collapsed to her hands and knees.

And as Lorelei looked up at the Black Widow, for the first time she had a sense of the _other_.

Framed by the flames, Natasha stood before her, a fearsome dark goddess rimmed by fire, and it was Lorelei who was the mere mortal.

When the darkness finally took her and the fear away, it was a relief.

 **XXX**

After a few more shocks to make sure the prone alien was not playing possum, and setting what was left of her hair on fire, Natasha took a few steps back and disconnected the power cables from her batons, having used the militant base's power grid to enhance them.

The sounds of engines made her glance up, "About time," Natasha muttered, having known that SHIELD would have detected the spike in gamma-radiation from when the witch crushed her husband's head. Doubtless Lorelei had dispatched Falcon to handle the field team, believing that the organization followed a strict hierarchy, but these operatives were encouraged to show initiative. Moreover, there were strict protocols in place for a Hulk-out.

SHIELD's higher-ups would have sent in some quinjets and fresh field agents to investigate, without consulting the field team already in place. Especially when the field team was failing to send in related reports on their own.

She pointed at the downed Asgardian and quickly used the organization's personal sign language to tell them that they were to secure her, with extreme prejudice, and then she turned to hurry back to Bruce.

 **XXX**

SHIELD Mobile HQ

"It's okay, man," Rhodes assured Sam as his fellow Avenger was gasping for breath, having dropped his gun in horror as Lorelei's hold over him was broken. "What can you tell me?"

 **XXX**

Natasha returned to the room to find her husband restored, if still unconscious, but everyone else was giving him plenty of room as best as they could despite being still tied up. Clearly they believed that the Hulk was just a hairsbreadth away from emerging.

Effortlessly she picked him up in her arms and carried him away, humming a soothing song to him. Over her shoulder she shot back, "Sif never hears about this. I don't need any more Asgardian songs about me, bad for my rep."

She did not bother to see their fearful nods of acknowledgement, and a knife suddenly flew through the air to land beside Agent Carter. Wordlessly, the blonde started to use it to free herself and the others.

 **XXX**

Later

Bruce slowly pulled himself into the waking world. Habit made him pretend to still be sleeping as he felt the unfamiliar floor beneath him as he tried to remem— "I know you're awake," the most beautiful voice gently told him, and arms folded around him.

With a grunt he brought himself sitting up with some support from Natasha. He blinked a few times as he tried to finish catching up, and took in how he was now dressed in an unfamiliar shirt. "I didn't hurt anyone did I?"

"Just their egos. They thought you were just some nerd, and then you went and beat them up."

"I am."

"Yes, but you're _my_ nerd, and they'll be telling all the other agents it's a bad idea to take your lunch money, even without the Big Guy."

He blinked a few times, "So _he_ didn't get out?"

"I goaded her into trying to kill you, knowing what would happen."

More eye blinks. "Smart thinking," he finally said, if a little uncomfortable.

"I'm sorry, I _knew_ that you would be safe, but—"

"It's okay," Bruce cut her off, looking away in shame. "It's not that, it's just how dangerous I can be, even now, like this. I've studied it myself, and I read the same SHIELD reports they did about me."

"The ones that Stark hacked you mean," Natasha grinned, and his lips quirked as well.

"Yeah, those."

SHIELD had been trying to get samples of Bruce Banner from the start, but had run into some unprecedented difficulties. Or more specifically, that everything about him was now radioactive. Not enough to be tracked, but it still acted in ways that defied conventional scientific thought. Agents had acquired specimens like residual saliva on discarded water bottles, but there was enough gamma in even that to corrupt it so that the scientists could never learn anything useful. But when it was his blood, especially when he received a traumatic injury, then it became another story.

The agent onsite at the car accident that first revealed he could survive decapitation, had to be treated for severe radiation poison exposure after repeated, failed attempts to pick up some of the acidic blood. When Bruce was studying his "condition," or Stark or Dr. Cho were helping him, he had to put himself directly under the various examination instruments since no sample would survive leaving his flesh, consuming itself and everything around it. That was why Natasha had been safely able to pick him up and carry him out, since the danger had already passed.

"It's deliberate," Bruce concluded aloud, his tone as light as if talking about the weather. "Whoever did this to me, they wanted to keep how it was done a secret."

"Yes," she said with equal dispassion.

He was quiet for a few moments thinking, and decided he had to finally address what the two of them had been avoiding, running away because neither wanted to face this confrontation. To actually have their first real lover's quarrel since Laura had come into their lives.

"…And that's why I want Laura to live at the Barton farm until this is over. Whatever's going to happen, it's going to be big and violent, and I want her out of the crossfire."

She was tempted to stay quiet and let her husband get it all out himself, but she realized she had to meet him halfway, to actually act as his partner in this relationship. "But now we know there's nowhere safe for her. At least not yet. We can only be vigilant. And no, we can't just leave her with Clint and _his_ Laura so we'll be freer to hunt the Appendix. She deserves better than that. Otherwise, we're just doing the equivalent of locking her in a cave"

Bruce felt like arguing, but as he looked at the dingy compound, he knew she was right. His heart ached with longing as he looked back at her, glowing with _life_ in a way that the Red Room had never been able to extinguish, knowing that he could never give off such a light as her, despite whatever she said. He knew then what to say at last.

"We were too lucky here," he murmured, "if she had given a different order, or had decided to kill you outright…" He could not look at her as he thought of that, but after she patiently waited for him, he forced himself to meet her eyes again. "I almost lost you today, and I won't deny Laura every spare moment with you." And then he gave a smile, "And far be it for me to argue with a god slayer!"

Natasha scowled and hit him in the shoulder, "Don't even joke! I don't need Thor coming back with an opera singing about us!"

Still, she chuckled as he mock-shuddered at the thought.

 **XXX**

Later

"You guys are lucky Bruce was using SHIELD's fancy tranq bullets," Natasha said told FBI Agent Fox and the other wakening agents. Noticing the grimaces and knowing she had to head off any unnecessary tension, she bulled on ahead, "If it was anyone other than him that Lorelei had gotten ahold of, you'd all be dead. Be glad he was here."

Just coming up, Bruce paused as he took in all the downed and beaten agents, "Uhm…"

"Trust me," Sam broke in as he joined them, "there's enough guilt to go around. Mandatory counseling sessions too, by the way."

"We can bring Clint in, if you want," Natasha whispered into Bruce's ear, referring to her best friend's enslavement by Loki. Her husband paused, but then gave a minute shake of his head. "I'll suck it up and go with them," he promised with gesturing with his head at the wounded men.

He winced again as he saw Sharon Carter being carried away on a gurney, "Black Widow!" she called out, while giving a thumb's up with the hand that lacked a broken wrist. "Keep training the nerd. He's got talent!"

"Awww! My little four eyes is beating up dangerous field agents," Natasha cooed in a voice so fake it would have made anyone but Bruce think she was being sarcastic, "I'm so proud!"

"What next, seduction?" he joked, running a hand through his graying hair.

"Nah, next you steal those agents' lunch money!" she solemnly informed him.

"I think Selvig said something about Laura doing that when she gets older," Sam deadpanned, and then got worried as he saw the mom's considering look, but then Bruce burst out laughing again, and she also smiled.

 **XXX**

Avengers Headquarters

A few days later

"We should set some place aside for the Asgardians to come down at, it really is murder on the lawn," Natasha remarked as the beam of rainbow light stabbed down to Earth.

"Worried it might seem rude to ask that," Steve ruefully admitted as Sif exited the Bifrost, the Asgardian means of transport leaving a burnt imprint within the ground.

"Lorelei has been imprisoned again, and Odin told me to see to the security measures personally. That is the reason for my delay."

"Don't worry, we figured that was it," Steve reassured her.  
"Any ideas on how this happened?" Natasha asked.

"None. Although her escape was only just discovered shortly before we encountered her. Odin assumed that _I_ was the one to capture her again," Sif added with a knowing look towards a slightly uncomfortable Natasha, "but he did not allow me the opportunity to correct him, so I let it be."

The assassin swiftly changed the topic. "So tomorrow do you want to join us for some training? Get you acclimatized to the team and all?" Seeing the woman's smile, Natasha confessed, "But you'll be sparring with Steve. I've had enough of fighting Asgardians for the next few days." She rubbed at her bruised chest, hoping it would help placate the warrior and her eagerness to fight the one who had bested Lorelei. As things presently stood, Natasha knew how a head-to-head sparring match would go between them. So first she definitely needed some more time off to heal, and also think of new fighting tricks first.

She had a reputation to maintain after all, and an Asgardian would be excellent practice for when the next serious threat chose to rear its head.

Only slightly disappointed, Sif gave a small grin in return. "That will be good, I have heard of your skills from Thor, Steve, and I look forward to testing myself against you."

"Just don't cut up my shield," he half-jested. It had been a little unnerving to learn that her sword, and the weapons of similarly advanced species, could even cut through vibranium-enforced materials. Tony in turn had promised to work on a forcefield like what the Asgardians apparently incorporated into their own shields.

"No promises," she shot back, enjoying the banter.

Pretending to looking at time on her wrist computer, Natasha decided that it was best for her to go before Sif tried to ask her again about her fight with Lorelei. "Whoops, look at the time, I've gotta go see Bruce."

"She's just making an excuse doing that," Steve informed Sif. "She _always_ knows what time it is. Even when she wakes up drugged, it's her super power. You should add that to your songs."

"I should shoot whoever encouraged you to lighten up," Natasha scowled in his direction. "Shut up," she added as he started to point at her.

With that, Natasha turned around to head off when Sif looked on in amusement at their interaction, noting that for all their words, they were as close as she and the Warriors Three.

"By the way," Natasha called over her shoulder as she walked away, "Bruce and I are getting married in a few weeks, and you're all invited."

She was around the corner before they could blink. "Typical," Steve fondly scoffed, while Sif was looking at him in confusion and needing an explanation.

 **XXX**

Romanoff-Banner Apartment

"I'll get you my pretty!" threatened the Wicked Witch to Dorothy onscreen, while on the couch and watching the film, Laura stuck out her tongue and blew a raspberry.

"…Definitely your daughter," Bruce concluded after looking at the little girl in surprise.

"I'm so proud!" Natasha gushed as Laura started waving her teddy bear in defiance at the black and white film screen.

Tony had dumped a load of Avengers' merchandise on the kid, but Laura steadfastly ignored all the stuffed Hulks, Black Widows, Captain Americas, and innumerable Iron Mans for the plain teddy bear that Wanda had shyly given her. Clearly Wanda was the favourite aunt. Followed by the noisy toys that Clint had oh-so-kindly given the baby. Coincidently, they were exact copies of the ones given to Lila back when Natasha had assumed she would never have any children for her friend to give retaliatory gifts to.

For now though, the whole family was just enjoying a quiet night watching the movie. Sure Laura might not understand it, and would probably be asleep in another half-hour, but none of them cared, just letting themselves be wrapped up in the peace of it all.

 **XXX**

Unknown Location

"Looks like we've got an answer to what that Asgardian signal was about. Here."

A pause as the second person is evidently reading something. "So they've no idea how this criminal got free?"

"If Asgard had any suspicions after a screw-up like this, they wouldn't tell outsiders. Not even the Avengers."

"I'll take your word for it. But this…"

"Yeah, I figured you'd be interested in that part. Romanoff really showed what humanity is capable of."

"Yes… yes she did... And together with _him_ , they're a formidable pair."

"Has Insight managed to figure out anything more about what they'll be doing now?" Referring to HYDRA's computer program to predict people's actions. The supposedly destroyed program.

"No. After Las Vegas there hasn't been anything conclusive enough to work with for those two, and I'm unsure now about its earlier reports. But we're definitely going to have to keep an eye on them, especially when we're still trying to make sure the civil war is back on track. But we definitely need her to make sure the winning side doesn't get too arrogant towards the unpowered populace, or else we'll have a whole different problem."

 **XXX**

 **Author Notes:**

 **Hoping I put in a good fight here for Natasha :-)**

 **Just as a reminder about the wedding, Bruce and Natasha are already married, but secretly with the Barton family witnessing it. They planned to hold off their public marriage for a time more appropriate and to help encourage comradery between the Avengers to make them closer as a team.**

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 **Next Chapter: "Family"**

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 **Please Review, and I will get back to you!**


	27. Family

For better or worse, Marvel owns all of this stuff, not me.

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Many thanks to my wonderful Betas, Jesuslovesmarina and theicemenace. Be sure to check out their stories as well!

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 **Brand new Brutasha community that may interest readers:**

 **community/HulkXBlack-Widow-Brutasha/126078/**

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Chapter 27: Family

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 _Previously:_

 _Concerned about the growing possibility of a conflict between the Avengers themselves and other heroes, both Bruce and Natasha began conspiring to prevent this catastrophe, with one of their many contingencies being beginning the recruitment for a secret team of heroes. Bruce and Natasha were also secretly married with the Barton family as witnesses, planning to use a later and larger scale wedding to help mold the Avengers closer together at a more appropriate time._

 _Initially the couple's work to keep the Avengers more cohesive seemed productive, but an unknown organization, nicknamed the "Appendix" by SHIELD, set in motion the destructive and unsettling Battle of Las Vegas, which re-ignited tensions between heroes and the public, and especially between Steve and Tony._

 _Meanwhile, Thor continues to prepare Asgard for war against Thanos, suggesting to "King Odin" that they approach other races to help._

-0-

" _My father lived outside the city, and I thought we would be safe there. My son was excited. He could see the Iron Man from the car window. I told my wife, "Don't worry. They're fighting in the city. We're miles from harm." And the dust cleared, and the screaming stopped. It took me two days until I found their bodies. My father still holding my wife and son in his arms... And the Avengers? They went home. I knew I couldn't kill them. More powerful men than me have tried. But if I could get them to kill each other_..."

-Helmut Zemo ("Captain America: Civil War" film)

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Stark Tower (formerly the Avenger's Tower)

Week later

Bruce stared up at the imposing height of the massive building in awe, just like any tourist seeing the home of the legendary Iron Man for the first time. It all went together with the aura of anonymity he was projecting, despite holding a tiny girl just over a year old in his arms. Laura was as adorable as ever, wide-eyed and alert as she attempted to wiggle out of her father's arms.

After a few more moments of contemplation, he walked up to the unassuming doors which parted right before him for his entrance.

" _Mr. Banner_ ," an electronic voice rang out in greeting, " _so very good to see you and your daughter. I trust you had a good trip?_ "

"Yes, thank you FRIDAY. How've Tony and Pepper been?"

" _Quite well, sir. Both had a lovely evening party together last night. Although Boss did seem a little concerned about something_."

"Was he sober?"  
" _Yes._ "

 _Oh, dear_. If it was bad enough that Tony had decided he needed all of his faculties together, then not only was the problem serious, but also something that had to be dealt with immediately.

Just before Bruce reached the elevator doors, they opened up to reveal the intimidating figure of Nick Fury stepping out. "Dr. Banner, how are you?" Fury asked, smirking at the horror on the man's face, before turning a broad smile to the baby. "And what about you, little Laura Fury? Are you treating your parents well? Giving them at least two hours of sleep at night? Are you? Good for you!" he beamed at the giggling child, refusing to mask his joy over never having to deal with such a nuisance himself (despite Laura Barton's constant efforts to rope him into babysitting.) For all he knew about kids, the parents were getting even less sleep than two hours (he was not far off).

"What are _you_ doing here?" Bruce finally managed to gasp out. The image of the former Director of SHIELD engaging in 'baby talk' was as disturbing. Fuel for nightmares. And there was still the concern of why he was seeing Tony just before Bruce.

"Just checking up on a few things, Stark can fill you in if you ask." Then his expression turned more serious. "I _am_ invited to the wedding, right?"

Having regained some of his deadpan humour, Bruce smiled innocently. "Where would we send the invite? We figured you'd just show up, and knock out whoever we chose to give the bride away."

Fury just gave an insufferable and enigmatic smirk. "Made up your mind on a godfather?"

 _Clint and Laura are already the godparents_ , Bruce thought to himself. Not that he would be telling anyone that secret. Playing off who could be the godfather might have to be another tool to keep Tony and Steve from going for each other's throats. "Don't worry, we haven't forgotten that whoever it was that named Laura," he deflected with the truth, while shifting his grip on her to draw attention to her, "chose to include your name. And we've no reason to change it." Bruce twitched his shoulders to indicate a shrug without shifting around his baby girl in his arms any more. "It's her name, and she deserves it."

 _So their feelings are unchanged for her despite their suspicions of her origins_ , Fury observed as he saw the love in the father's eyes. While it filled him with approval to see how much Romanoff's boyfriend cared, it also filled him with dread. The Nightmare of Las Vegas had only highlighted the danger both lover and daughter posed. Banner had few vulnerabilities, but the few he had –two in particular— were triggers that could break the world beneath green fists.

The Battle of Las Vegas, and the power and methods the Hulk had wielded against the copies of himself, had making it chillingly clear that there was still some dangerous mysteries surrounding it.

 **XXX**

Cleveland, Ohio

(Two weeks ago)

Ex-Colonel Helmut Zemo silently stared at the video footage of the Hulk as he fought what the media were calling hulklings. The feed had been slowed down to compensate for the Avenger's speed, giving him a more complete depiction portrayal of what had happened, but his focus never strayed from the Hulk's eyes. The fear and pain that drove such anger.

 _And that rage serves to make people more afraid of the Hulk, which leads them to attack him more. A complete circle_ , he mused. _But what was different this time?_

Intuitively, Zemo knew the Hulk wasn't merely upset on his own behalf.

 _There is something else driving this rage, making him fight …but what?_

Zem had lived and survived by his gut instinct as long as he could remember, and now, as he stared into a still image of those swollen, rage-filled eyes, he could swear he could swear he could also see… _Desperation?_

 _…Could it be, that this time it's not something driving him to rage, but some_ one _? That he's afraid for them? The Avengers and their alien allies were all in trouble before he arrived, but maybe a particular individual? He did run off afterwards, and the only Avenger unaccounted for in all of this video footage is Romanoff…_

 _No, this is just speculation. I know I'm missing something important here, but I need to gather more facts first. But at least now I have somewhere to start…_

With a goal in mind, Zemo got to work, intent on finding the clues he needed as quickly as possible. He was, after all, anxious to witness the downfall of the Avengers.

 **XXX**

Stark Tower

Present

"You continue to take care of them, Dr. Banner," Fury warned good-naturedly. "I don't want to have to march you up that aisle with a shotgun."

"I've been repeatedly informed, by a variety of sources, that I'm not the one with the pants on in the family," Bruce chuckled.

"See that you remember that," Fury agreed, and clapped Bruce on the shoulder. Without another word, he walked out the front door and disappeared into the crowds.

Laura seemed to shoot a concerned look in the older man's direction, but Bruce just said reassuringly, "Don't worry. Tony has FRIDAY jamming all cameras that aren't his outside. And he's brilliant at his job, just not as good as your Mom or Uncle Clint. But he'll still be fine."

" _You know she can't understand you, right?_ " Tony's voice chimed in from the intercom. " _Even I dropped the theory that she's some sort of super-super-spy wrapping us all around her little pinky finger and pretending to be baby-like._ "

"Gotta say something," Bruce answered, still enraptured by Laura's eyes, Natasha's eyes, which were as bright as her smile was again.

" _Well whatever, how long're you going to stand around down there having a staring contest with her? C'mon up, shawarma's getting cold. I even got someone to make baby-shawarma_."

"Baby what!?" he blinked in surprise as he finally looked away from his child.

 **XXX**

"See! She likes it!" Tony crowed while watching Laura in her high chair stuffing schwarma into her mouth, her glee making her look like a messy angel.

"Thank you, Tony," Bruce smiled, unable to say anything in the face of such a happy look from the two of them. _We'll just cut off any other unhealthy food for the rest of the week; easier than arguing._

They chatted about the weather and gossiped about what Pepper was doing with Stark Industries, or what was happening back at the Avenger's compound. After Laura seemed full and had been tidied up, they led the slowly walking girl to a room Tony had built specially for her. Once she saw all the toys and bright cushions to lie on or bury under, she took off like an arrow on two legs.

Meanwhile, the adults got down to more serious business.

"I admit I was surprised to get your invitation," Bruce began. "I didn't think you'd still be on Earth, instead of working for SWORD more," referencing the program for protecting the Earth from extraterrestrial threats.

"I was seriously thinking about it," Tony shrugged, "but I've also been giving a lot of thought to what happened in Vegas, and after. Gave up on it, for now, after I heard about what your new Asgardian friend said about it."

Bruce frowned in thought as he remembered that conversation between SWORD's Director, Dr. Selvig, and Sif.

 **XXX**

[Flashback]

Avenger's Headquarters

 _"I can understand why you're worried of further alien invasions, but there is no need," Sif informed the man in charge of worrying about that. Her distracted tone as she appeared more focused on getting a Pop-Tart out of its wrapper without destroying the treat, made her attitude more than a little bit irritating._

 _"What's to stop the Chitauri from just sending spaceships to invade us the conventional way!? Skipping the whole space portal! We don't even know what they really wanted the first time!" Selvig demanded. "Aside from the Tesseract that is," he added under his breath._

 _"Asgard will stop them," Sif flatly answered. "Heimdall will, to be more specific."_

 _The man paused at that, "What do you mean?"_

 _"I mean that whenever a hostile ship has approached Asgard, one with the ability to rain fire or death down upon your planet, Heimdall destroyed them with Bifrost. He does the same with asteroids whose path he finds worrisome for your planet. The only reason he did not intervene when the Chitauri invaded before was because he trusted Thor to handle it. More to the point, the portal brought the Chitauri right into your atmosphere, which meant that if he were to attack them, it would have caused as much destruction to your city as the invaders were already committing."_

 **XXX**

Present Day

"Of course, that isn't an option right now, is it? Since Thor and everyone else is off fighting some sort of intergalactic war or whatever. And the fact that they're _that_ worried, means that there's people out there who can match them despite all their abilities and technology that still seem like magic to us!"

"SWORD—"

"Is just starting and doesn't have us! You! The Avengers! Imagine if we were working for them!" Tony cried. "We were utterly useless in Vegas if someone else hadn't come to help out, not even you could have done it if Asgard hadn't shown up to hand us a Deus Ex Machina! We need to be united, prepared, and with backing of the whole world if we're going to save it. Imagine if we'd been able to call in the military, _all_ the militaries, to help fight Ultron!"

He took a deep breath, and pulled a bottle of brandy and two glasses out of a concealed panel in the wall to pour himself and Bruce a drink. _That'd better be child proof_ , Bruce thought with a glare at the hidden cupboard. It was not the time and place to deal with that though.  
"If we keep pushing things though," Bruce argued, trying to get through his friend's guilt and worries–and yes, an entire army of people like Thor and Sif was unnerving once you had actually experienced it— with logic he could understand, "the Avengers will break. If anyone pushes us, we push back, even with each other."

Tony snorted at that, knowing that for years, whenever people barked at Bruce, he had just rolled over to show his belly, but he was right about the rest. The principle flaw of the proposed Sokovian Accords was that it was mandatory for those with powers or particular abilities (i.e. Romanoff and Barton), they had to either work for the UN or regulate themselves to uneventful anonymity. If someone disagreed with that, decided to be a hero, or 'vigilante' as they would be labeled, things would turn violent. Fast.

"Don't you see how important it is that we're united to deal with the Appendix?" he tried instead, referring to the shadowy group that had been manipulating the Avengers before they had even been created. "Whoever they are, they're playing too big a game, what with creating the Hulk and Laura," Bruce's eyes narrowed at that, "and keeping us at each other's throats after helping bringing us together seems to be on their agenda now. If we're together, legally, then they can't do anything."

"The only ones putting us at each other's throats, Tony," Bruce said in a quiet, flat tone, "is ourselves. They might, _might_ , be using Project: Insight to predict our moves, eliminating politicians who might oppose Registration, and influencing the others, and we're sure they're behind the Battle of Las Vegas to turn public attention against us, but in the end, it's _our_ actions that we choose to make that matter."

They stood facing each other, with Bruce still not reaching for the proffered brandy, staring into each other's eyes as if trying to read what lay behind. Finally, knowing that this was pointless, he accepted the drink and decided to move things along. "Just what did you talk to Fury about before I got here?"

With a knowing smirk and a salute with his filled cup as if Bruce were a student who had gotten the right question, Tony pulled out a piece of paper from his pocket with his other hand.

 **XXX**

Nova Corps Empire

Somewhere in space

"Peter, what's wrong?" Gamora asked as she took in the uncharacteristic concern on their leader's face.

Catching himself, Peter Quill tried to reclaim his nonchalant attitude. "Huh? Oh, sorry, nothing."

"There is not nothing. You are concerned, my friend," Drax interjected.

"Yeah, you look like you've seen a ghost," Rocket added, worried since it took a lot to take the self-styled Star-Lord down a notch.

"Ahh, it's just, okay, knowing that _Asgard,_ of all places, is getting involved freaks me out a bit, okay!?"

"Whatdya mean? Someone mistakin' you for one or something?" Rocket asked, noting the physical similarities, doubtless because Terra was part of the Nine Realms.

Taking a deep breath, Peter Quill leaned back in his chair and stared into nothingness for a moment before sitting back up to look directly at his friends. "Back when Yondu and the Ravagers first picked me up, one of the first places they went afterwards was the homeworld of the Skrull Empire, or should I say, what was left of it."

Gamora's eyes tightened, and she nodded in understanding at how that place could further scar the memories of young boy, even one who had already been abducted by pirates.

"Those are the shapeshifters, are they not?" Drax queried. "They had an empire?"

"Yeah," Peter answered darkly as memories came to the front. "One of the largest. They would infiltrate their neighbours and conquer them from within. Take over their leaders, cripple their defenses, and ferment civil war or uprisings. Whatever it took. Only the other big powers could stand up to them, and mostly because they had the tech to distinguish who was an infiltrator. Or the warships to stop a direct invasion."

Everyone was listening quietly now, disturbed by their usually optimistic friend's tone.

"One day," Peter continued, "Asgard just attacked out of nowhere and laid waste to them all. A civilization that rivaled the Kree or Novas," he slid a finger across his through, "and they just wiped it out. Yondu got a tip that one of the Skrull's fleets had been absent for the attack, and had headed straight to Asgard for revenge, and Yondu got some people to figure out what route they'd have taken. We followed it, and found the wrecks.

"Hundreds of them, some of them absolutely massive, and each and every one of them with a hole smashed right into them. And not everyone died right away, either; life support kept the crews going even if their ships were hulks, and even after a hundred years or so, the bodies were still intact enough to give me nightmares. _Everyone_ was creeped out. Even Yondu." He tilted his head in an afterthought. "Also annoyed, since other people had gotten their first and were already towing the ships away."

"It was the Bifrost," Gamora said quietly, and when everyone turned to look at her, she elaborated. "Asgard's primary means of transportation can be used as a weapon to strike anywhere, just as much as it can dispatch their soldiers. It is one of the reasons they are one of the most powerful civilizations still. As for the war itself, according to what Thanos told me, Asgard learned that the Skrulls were thinking of attacking Asgard."

"Wait, what d'you mean 'thinking?'" Rocket asked incredulously.

"That they had drawn up plans for attack, Asgard found out, and decided not to wait," was her flat response.

They all stared at each other quietly. "They would be excellent allies for killing Thanos," Drax concluded.

No one disagreed, yet they _were_ wondering how to keep their own personal distance from the Asgardians all the same. Then Rocket perked up in curiosity. "Gamora, did Thanos just idly tell you all that? Not that you have to tell _me_ ," he added hastily with upraised hands, knowing how she felt about her past, "but it _is_ curious."

"Yes, I…" then Gamora's expression turned thoughtful as she stopped to think about what had happened. "It was an Asgardian who told me, and only about a year or so ago. He was rather boastful about it. How he had infiltrated the infiltrators to destroy them from within. Thanos offered him a deal, and he stayed with us for a while. And," at this she turned to her friends baring her teeth in a smile as she started contemplating the possibilities before them, "he was one of the two princes of Asgard, Loki Laufeyson."

"Weeeeelll now," Star-Lord drawled, pulling his thoughts out of his past. "I wonder what we can do with that information?"

Still having difficulty with rhetoric, Drax answered. "We can use this to warn Nova Corps that the security and secrets of their new allies may likely have been compromised. Thanos likely already knows whatever secrets this traitor gave away."

"Let's not be hasty," Rocket said with glee, drooling over the Asgardian tech he might gain access to in the near future. "Let's think this over carefully before cashing it in."

"I am Groot!" a little voice squeaked, and they proudly agreed with their little friend.

 **XXX**

Barton Farm

Bringing her motorcycle to a halt, Wanda Maximoff shut it down, and took off her helmet –she was too smart to not drive safe…or risk a disapproving look from Laura Barton— and walked up towards the house. The young Avenger never even noticed the spring in her step as she approached.

The door opened before she could knock, and Laura enfolded the young woman in a tight, warm hug. "Wanda! What a surprise! We're so glad to see you! The kids are still in school, but Clint should be back soon and we can all catch up."

Returning the hug, the eighteen-year old's smile grew even as the stress within her evaporated. She had been through so much lately, and she had known she had to get away for the sake of her sanity.

No one wanted a mentally unstable telepath and telekinetic.

"How long are you staying?"  
"Not sure," Wanda answered. "Though I'll try to make it back for the wedding. You heard about that?"  
"No," Laura asked while she led the girl in the house and into the kitchen where Wanda's favourite snacks were waiting.

"Let me guess, Steve and Tony finally admitted their feelings for each other?" Clint called out as he came in through the back door. Wanda once more found herself in a comforting embrace that she just melted into. "Glad you could make it."

Back during her early days with the Avengers, Clint had stayed around to help her, as much as possible, becoming like a mentor for her, and then something else. She had started to seek him out at first for advice on how to be a teenage fighting machine, but then increasingly about issues like how to interact with her new teammates, American customs, and even dealing with the loss of Pietro. Then one day Clint had come into her darkened room to find her hunched over her bed, trying to come to grips with all of the dead faces she had seen from the day's mission when the Avengers had arrived to discover that most of the people they had come to save had already been killed.

Silently, he had given her all of the comfort he could in the form of a fatherly hug.

It was not until later, the morning after another mission that had left her exhausted from overusing her powers, when she had woken up remembering how it had felt just like the time her…first dad had carried her home after she had broken her leg. Instead of feeling mortified, she had been pleased at the revelation that Clint had become so much like a father to her, if a little nervous at how he might react. To her relief, he said nothing about that night, yet still made himself more available to help her, and in time she had found herself increasingly using that moniker when they were alone.

When she had first come to the Barton farm, it had slipped out, to her mortification, but Laura had just hugged her with a smile of approval.

Stepping back, she registered his earlier comment, and broke into a small laugh. "No, no. But you might have a point. Not surprised you haven't heard. It's Natasha and Bruce. After what happened with the rogue Asgardian—classified, don't tell anyone—" she mockingly ordered, "they decided to get married."

"Oh, when?" Laura positively beamed, though Wanda was a little surprised that she was not more enthusiastic.

"Not sure," she admitted with a small shrug. "In my opinion, they should've done it a long time ago."

 **XXX**

Clint's features were carefully schooled to only show what he wanted them to, but behind Wanda's back Laura had a small frown on. _I've gotta talk to Natasha about letting Wanda know she and Bruce are already married_ , the archer knew. That was also why they had not been informed of the wedding. Natasha would have told them first if she was getting married for real.

Still, Clint had been quietly regretful that for the first and secret Romanoff-Banner wedding, Wanda had pointedly stayed with the rest of the Avengers while Bruce and Natasha had gone on vacation to the Barton Farm.

It was understandable really, given how badly the young woman felt about what she had done to the Avengers. And while Natasha had been forgiving, it was clear that Wanda had been more than a little afraid of Bruce for some time after. Clint and Natasha had talked about it when he'd stayed to help with baby Laura, and they had agreed it was best for Wanda and Bruce to have a little space to work things out on their own. Fantastically, according to a few covert phone calls, it appeared that the two of them had come to an understanding, of sorts, thereby removing the tension within their extended family.

That said, it was clear that Wanda and Bruce were not yet close enough for him to trust her with the secret of his marriage to Natasha, and whatever else they were doing to keep things from boiling over with the Avengers.

Clint did not like secrets between family members, even if he respected that they were Natasha and Bruce's to share. He figured a little prompting might bring Wanda in on the conspiracy, though, and encourage Bruce to offer her his trust.

He did not like secrets between family members, even if he respected that they were the Natasha and Bruce's to share. Not to mention that bringing Wanda in on it would prove that she'd gained their trust.

"'Rogue Asgardian'," he quoted. "Nothing too serious I hope?"

Wanda waved her hand reassuringly. "She tried to use magic to control Bruce, and Natasha put her in her place. Saw her being taken away by Sif, and what Natasha did to her was painful to look at." The fearsome Scarlet Witch cocked her head with a smug look. "Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned."

He snorted a laugh. "I've been married long enough to know a trick question when I hear it," and Laura reached over to give him a playful slap on the shoulder. "Change of subject," Clint put in when they'd settled down. "How long're you staying? I can lay in more supplies when I pick up the kids."

"Not sure yet. Long enough to dampen the memory of clashing egos," Wanda answered, while waving her hand to indicate to Clint she would like to talk about it later. "It's just the stress getting to me," she quickly reassured Laura. "Especially with Steve and Stark in such constant disagreement."

 _It's obviously a lot worse than that if she's doesn't want to talk about it in front of Laura_ , Clint decided, knowing that Wanda did not yet realize just what a steely soul his wife wielded. _That, and Wanda's just not used to being "mothered."_

It had taken all of his self-control to not chortle when an utterly bewildered Black Widow had come down with the flu once and found herself confined to bed with endless bowls of chicken soup. She had _tried_ to sneak away, but somehow Laura had _always_ caught her. Clint had been sworn to silence under the dire threat of being infected and having to go through all of that himself.

"So you guys doing okay? No problems around the farm?" Wanda asked in a transparent attempt to change the topic.

"Yes, everything's been just fine," Laura obliged, putting a hand on Clint's shoulder. "He's been _very_ helpful since retiring." After a quick pat of approval, she started boiling the teapot while getting out Wanda's favourite tea. "He even cooks most nights. Your room is the same as you left it," Laura told Wanda while handing her a cup of tea. Her room had used to be the guest room, but the Bartons had cleaned it out especially for her when her visits started becoming more frequent.

"Fair warning, tomorrow's Saturday, and this isn't Avengers HQ where Cap lets you sleep in 'till eight-thirty on weekends. When you have three kids under the age of ten, getting up at seven instead of six-thirty is called," he made air quotes, "'sleeping late'. And kids can be very inventive when it comes to waking their parents who don't get up fast enough," Clint mock shuddered while holding in a laugh at the horrified look on Wanda's face that was only partially in jest. "And because you're their big sister, it's mandatory for Cooper and Lila to wake you up before me!"

They respectfully let their mom rest of course, the little angels.

Clint could see how touched Wanda was by the words 'big sister,' despite her attempts to hide it, so he and his wife gave her another hug.

 **XXX**

Stark Tower

While Tony was being a drama queen Bruce took the opportunity to go see Laura. She had just pulled herself out of a pile of cushions and was now heading towards a box of building blocks. "Here you go," Bruce sang out as he helped her pull out more toys. "Let's see what we can make with this!"

His daughter gave a happy cry and waved the blocks in her hands before plopping down on her rear to play with her new toys. Satisfied that she was happy and aware her dad was paying attention to her, Bruce took a seat beside Tony. He took the proffered paper without a word while Tony poured himself another drink. The page only held a chemical formula.

Bruce found himself frowning as he worked to decipher the unfamiliar formula, despite his expertise in chemistry. "FRIDAY," the scientist began, but the AI helpfully anticipated him and projected several holoscreens that examined some of the more esoteric details in greater depth.

"This—this is—" he began before dropping his voice to a stunned whisper, "this could change the world!"

 **XXX**

[Flashback]

 _New York_

 _(Last night)_

 _Tony forced a smile to stay on his face as he walked amongst his fellow attendees at the charity event. Many of America's most wealthy and influential people were present tonight. He had been trying to avoid these events, yet it was for a charity event directly related to the Battle of New York, and would also offer him the chance to talk to some colleagues about further support for the Avenger's relief efforts in Africa. All talk about Las Vegas was pointedly ignored, or the inquirer was sent off with a scathing comment ringing in their ears._

 _His attendance also meant he had encountered a lovely senator's daughter, who had clearly been looking around for someone. Perfect lips, impressive cleavage that was tantalizingly exposed, and a butt that would captivate any man._

 _Tony grinned internally when someone that could have been her grandpa, white-haired and stooped over his cane as he ambled past, ogled over through his thick square glasses. His mustache hung around his slightly opened mouth before he nearly tripped over his own feet. When Tony caught his eye, the older man grinned without remorse. "No harm in looking," he proclaimed openly, as careless with his expression as though he owned the franchise._

 _To the man's chagrin, she seemed to have overheard, for she glanced over her shoulder and immediately turned around. Ignoring the older man who did not know whether he should look relieved or disappointed when she passed by, she came right up to Tony. It quickly became clear that she was insistent about spending some time alone with him. With his customary tact (sarcasm), she was informed that he was already in a committed relationship, and was not interested, not even if she had an identical twin sister to join them. Yet then, he noticed how she was trying to hide how genuinely afraid she was._

 _Quickly letting some of his old charm come to play, Tony led her aside, away from the other partygoers, got her a drink, and discretely put the note she had passed him in his pocket. After a few soft words, she brightly cheered up for everyone to see, and walked away. Ignoring the knowing looks the other guests were giving him, and pitying or smug looks Pepper got when she rejoined him, Tony continued to mingle._

 _Half an hour later, he had excused himself from the party to use the porcelain throne, and read and memorized the note. It was surprisingly long, written in small print by a quick hand, and detailed a chemical formula, one that put his neck hairs on edge._

 _A few minutes later he was back at the party, fighting the urge to run back home to follow the instructions with Friday's help._

 ** _XXX_**

 _Stark Tower_

 _(About an hour before Bruce arrived)_

 _Without exception, Fury loathed each and every meeting he had with Iron Man. The (relatively) pleasant ones were those where he just had to push and prod the narcissist into the proper direct. The rest of the time they only got together because the world was in danger of ending. The look in the man's eye now had Fury concerned it might be the latter this time._

 _Stark's AI had sent out quiet feelers to get ahold of him, and was obviously agitated, having FRIDAY do a complete lockdown of the tower, making Fury even more concerned. The billionaire might be an ego-maniac when his better half was not around to keep him in check, a control freak, and not as smart as he thought he was, but he had never displayed symptoms of outright paranoia._

 _They were sitting at the bar with Stark gulping down some scotch, while Fury sipped his and looked at what was typed out on a computer tablet. "Stark, I have people to translate this stuff for me. Because you're the one who asked me here, I'm hoping you'll do that for them."_

 _"It's a chemical formula that lets the owner blackmail most of the world's major governments."_

 _"Care to elaborate?" Fury asked unfazed. He had heard many such grand statements over the years._

 _"It's a formula for synthetic diesel fuel. One that doesn't hurt the environment with emissions, or have any other repercussions. Despite the complexity of it, it wouldn't be difficult to safely make at home, at far less than you'd pay at the gas station. I tested it last night._

 _"Put that on the internet, and it'll go viral, and unlike with my slow introduction of Arc Reactors, the entire oil industry dies overnight while homeowners go buy the necessary ingredients from department stores. Oil industry collapses, along with everyone who profits from it. We're talking entire countries! And you'd know better than me what this would do to international politics."_

 _With effort, Fury kept his face inscrutable, but he had a nasty suspicion that Stark caught a hint of what he was feeling._

 _"Yeah, something that perfect? Had to be tailored that way to cause just that kind of chaos to threaten people with. A senator's daughter passed me that, so I'm guessing her father is among those being coerced for whatever reason. Now who do we know with advanced technology and an agenda towards manipulating people?"_

 _"The Appendix," Fury growled. "They're trying to change their MO." HYDRA would never create something that risked giving power to the people. "After Banner's little threat on camera they realized they had to change their tactics. Adapt." How he hated amateurs letting their emotions get the better of them like that._

 _"Exactly," and Stark threw back another glass of fine alcohol, ignoring how a few days ago, he had invited Bruce and his kid over for later this morning. The look he gave the spymaster, the man the Avengers still looked to for guidance, was angry and bitter. "I'm sick of the science these people are pulling out of their rears, and trying to figure out what they're up to. We've got to take action. What do you think, Nick?"_

 **XXX**

Present

"We have to do something about this, Tony," Bruce gasped after his friend finished recounting what had happened. "The environment, global warming, the conflicts in the Middle East! If done right, we could solve all that! And you know how blackmail works! If we don't release it, then whoever this is will just keep holding the formula over our heads!"

"I know, and I know, but this is also what I'm talking about with the Sokovian Accords!" Bruce stiffened at that, but Tony kept going. "We're literally unqualified to make such a decision. Saving the world, however necessary, yes," he shrugged, effectively ignoring Ultron's creation as he did so, "but not predicting the political, economic, and sociological consequences of something like this! If we were part of some overseeing body, we'd have other people to make those sorts of decisions! People who'd have what's necessary to make the proper choice."

The Avengers currently had SHIELD, but Bruce was well aware that none of the Avengers, even Natasha, would feel comfortable entrusting something like this to the spy agency. Intelligence work, taking out identified villains, dealing with the strange and mysterious in this all too fragile world, _that_ they were good at. Choosing the correct path to guide the planet…there they tended to stumble. It said a lot that many of the actions taken by the HYDRA moles had been largely overlooked as being part of the daily business of SHIELD. None of Pierce's actions had ever really been questioned, including developing the means to kill people anywhere, anytime.

It was best not to commit to anything right this moment, and continue to work towards the main issue of why Tony had invited Bruce and his daughter over. "So, what did Fury say at the end?" But Tony still caught the slight change in his Science Bro's voice, and knew that the man was fishing. _Well, that just confirms it…_ "Nothing much," he said aloud. "Wanted to look into what else was being done to intimidate people, and like you, see if there was a way to safely release this."

They both fell into silence now, except for the sounds of Laura rapping toy blocks against each other, as Bruce waited for Tony to get around to addressing what he was steaming over.

"So, what I wanted to talk to you about when I invited you over," Tony casually began, but Bruce was instantly on guard. Tony Stark, Iron Man, was always at his most dangerous when he was calm and relaxed. Either he was going to do some crazy experiment—i.e. Ultron— or he was about to reveal how in-control of the situation the ex-playboy really was. Or thought he was, at any rate.

"First of all, there is the not-so-minor practical issue of funding. Specifically, where does it come from if I'm not the one financing the Avengers?"

Tony quickly waved his hand dismissively. "That's not a threat to cut off the purse, but it really is an issue. The only reason the Avengers lasted as long as they have is because of SHIELD and then later me paying for all of the equipment, room and board, whatever. We can't even depend on merchandising, because the lawsuit over the rights for all the toys and t-shirts would be dragged out until we went bankrupt. And no, before you ask, getting Thor to pay for everything would cause new troubles."

"…because then he'd be an alien supporting what critics would label as a paramilitary group on American soil," Bruce realized after he thought about it for a moment.

"Bingo, or close enough. Again, given time we could probably pull it off without more public backlash, but the Avengers just haven't been around long enough. And right now, especially after Las Vegas and seeing him leading an alien army, there's too much controversy."

"So you're saying that at this rate we might need to Register just to keep the Avengers operational," Bruce finished, hiding his own thoughts. Natasha had warned him about this ages ago, noting that one of the best ways to take dictators or crime lords down was to cut the purse strings needed to keep their muscle in line. If Tony felt that Avengers were too far into the wrong, he could kill the team without firing a shot; just a simple electronic order to cut off the credit cards and bank accounts.

"But Tony, we can't just make this about money."

"Oh no, I agree, that's an important issue, but there's a lot more important ones to worry about." Tony gulped down his glass and refilled it before continuing, voice steady as steel.

"The people pushing for Registration claim that one of the most crucial advantages to it is that it would provide us with oversight. And they're right, a system of checks and balances is what we need. We need to be trusted, accountable if we're going to save the world. Because if the people we're protecting can't trust us," he shrugged and poured himself some more amber fluid, "we don't deserve to be heroes.

"Of course, one of the biggest problems with us having this magical oversight, is figuring out who it would be. After all, trust is a two-way street, and that's one of the biggest concerns _we_ have: who'd we trust to be in charge?" Tony's voice was becoming more and more serious now, yet carefully not meeting Bruce's eyes. "SHIELD is disgraced, and while it's getting back up, it's going to be a long time before anyone believes they're trustworthy.

"The UN? Possibly, great little bit of symbolism and all, but would we actually be able get something strong enough to keep us in check? Or would we just have the threat of having our wrists slapped by a committee whenever we flew off to save the day from an alien invasion while they dickered over whether or not we had the legal right to cross that country's borders?"

 _At least he admits that he'd probably break all the laws and promises if he thought it necessary_ , Bruce accepted.

"Not the USA of course," Tony went on as if it were obvious. "Not given the example of Ross and what else happened in Vegas. The Army even had the gall to approach me for new anti-Hulk weapons last week," he added as an aside, making Bruce wince. That Stark Sonic Cannons that had been used to try and take the Hulk out when he had been attacked at Culver University had hit Tony hard when he had discovered this; his legacy having included trying to kill his future Science Bro. Undeterred, Tony kept going.

"HYDRA moles as senators. Aldrich Killian had the vice-president in his pocket and nearly in power. I could go on, but you get the idea. Even the Sentinel of Liberty and Defender of the American Way," and yes, Stark knew Rogers hated those names, and _especially_ when he used that sarcastic tone, "is a bit leery about trusting the politicians with something like this."

 _Understatement_ , Bruce thought. Steve Rogers fully believed that the politicians and bureaucrats would try to dictate what was right and wrong with no appreciation for reality or circumstances.

"And no," Tony finished as he started to get to his point, "I haven't forgotten _why_ I had to shove a nuke through a portal. The people upstairs panicked and nearly killed everyone in New York for nothing.

"What about one of us? Making sure we don't go too far, dealing with the legalities and making sure we're qualified for what we're doing. And yes, I'd be one of those under the watchdog."

Bruce cocked his eyebrows in surprise at this, putting Steve in charge might—

"Not Capsicle. You."

Laura clapped her hands and laughed, drawing the eyes of both men to see how she had built another tower out of blocks.

They quickly praised her, but when they turned back to each other, Tony was finally meeting Bruce's gaze, "I mean, that's what you've been working towards for all these months, isn't it?"

Only years of hiding from the world and himself let Bruce control his mask so that he appeared confused, but Tony cut him off from saying anything.

"I almost missed it you know," Tony went on, and Bruce could hear the irritation, the hint of betrayal, and of course –Tony being Tony— admiration in his voice. "Actually, that's a lie. It was Pepper who figured it out, pointed me in the right direction."

 _Of course it was. The women are the smart ones in both our relationships. Of course she's probably also the only reason Tony hasn't gone and done something drastic again._

"It was working, by the way. Rogers and I met and talked about finding a solution, just before you went and revealed your plan about that comet and showing what else the Avengers had to offer the world. Great drama, great message, and it all seemed to be going copasetic for everybody. Right up until seeing an army of hulklings duke it out with more invading aliens.

"I realized that we needed to get bigger, faster. As much as I wanted to work with Rogers on this, to keep our strange little family together, we have a greater responsibility."

Bruce said nothing, just quietly waited for his friend to get to the point.

Tony swirled his glass in silence before looking up to stare in his friend's eyes, "A year ago, if you'd told me we could work it out, or agreed without actually committing to anything I said, all to avoid a fight here and now or in the future, I'd have been all for it. But you're no longer that man. While everyone's thinking you're busy changing diapers and staying low in your lab, you've been waging your own quiet little war. Keeping things together, risking fights, to stop a bigger one."

There was pride and approval in his voice, if some annoyance that Tony was one of the people Bruce had been quietly manipulating.

"None of that passive-aggressive crap either," he added before downing his drink. "But you've still been doing that too, altering some of my computer files for something I haven't figure out yet," again there was a flicker of mixed emotions in Tony's eyes there, "working to make me and Capsicle bestest buddies, and using your own daughter to do it," jerking a thumb at Laura who was now just staring quietly. "Ruthless, and I know Romanoff couldn't have done it without at least your consent.

"And then there's Vegas, where you actually flew into the city to knock heads together. Because they were a possible threat to your family, and to send a message to the Appendix."

Grabbing a bottle to refill, Tony gave another knowing look. "Before, you didn't have much to lose really. Going about life in a dark depressive funk. But Natasha and Laura gave you something to fight for, and you'll sic the Hulk on whoever gets in your way. Or whatever else you can think of."

People tended to forget that Tony could never have made Ultron, or Vision, without his friend. That it had only taken them a handful of hours for each project.

"You're omitting yourself from the list of people who helped, but yes, there's nothing I wouldn't do for my wife and daughter," Bruce quietly informed him, and Tony's gaze hardened at the steel he heard there. No, his little Science Bro had grown up, and he'd missed it. And sometimes it was a trade-off who was more dangerous: Daddy Banner, Dr. Banner the scientist, or the Hulk.

 **XXX**

Washington, D.C.

A little white house

Ex-Colonel Helmut Zemo absently re-played another recorded scene on his laptop, bringing up the one of Banner before he became the Hulk in Vegas. " _Good. I want to pass a message,"_ the scientist began, " _I don't know who you are, or why you did it, but all I know is that YOU did this to me. Turned me into a monster. And now, it looks like you've done the same to all these people. And when I find you, and I will, I'll snap your neck like a twig without even turning green._"

Even those scant facts surrounding Hulk's artificial creation offered many possibilities for Zemo to exploit, but he also knew that the Avengers and SHIELD would be pouring all of their resources into such a line of inquiry. For his mission to succeed, he had to come at them from another angle.

He had worked to access the encrypted files that the Black Widow had dumped onto the internet, but he had known from the start that someone with Stark's vast resources would have decrypted everything first. Moreover, it appeared that those files had been incomplete, for HYDRA's infiltrators and operations had merely been a single arm, however significant, of the overall organization.

What he _had_ gotten, however, was enough clues to go along with what learned from his time commanding EKO Scorpion, the Sokovian covert kill squad. With those hints to start with, Zemo had been able to track down secret HYDRA cells and learn about the Winter Soldier, his original identity, his crimes, and a red book full of codes used to control him. Codes that would reveal the truth of what occurred on December 16, 1991.

Unfortunately, the Winter Soldier himself, and thus the definitive proof necessary to drive a permanent wedge between the Avengers, still eluded him. This, however…

A faint noise brought him sharply back to the real world. Zemo got up from the stairs and casually walked over to a man waking up to find himself hanging from the basement ceiling, skull hovering ominously over the large sink.

"Reginald Fortean. Before we start, I just want to let you know that your brother and his family," whose house Fortean had been staying in, and was currently suspended upside down within, "have not come home yet. So, I think it's in both our interests that we finish this quickly." With that, Zemo reached over and removed the gag.

In truth, the family had regrettably come home early. Reginald Fortean's nephew's soccer game had been cancelled. Fortean's brother had also been military, so Zemo had been forced to sanction the entire family. Zemo had made their deaths quick and painless. All he need do to get the man to talk was make him believe that his family was still alive.

"W-what do you want?" the prisoner croaked.

"During the Battle of Las Vegas, the Black Widow was absent, and the Hulk later disappeared. I've been asking around, and I believe that you, General Ross' protégé, can fill in the blanks."

It had taken a lot of careful digging to learn of the connection between Fortean and his mentor, Thunderbolt Ross, though fortunately only a few bodies.

Fortean was clearly struggling between committing treason and arming Zemo with any knowledge, against his family's safety. But as Zemo knew, love of family trumped all. "The General had been trying to keep tabs on the Avengers for ages, working quietly to keep SHIELD from figuring it out. We finally caught a break just before Vegas. They'd found a HYDRA agent, the Winter Soldier, who's apparently, an old friend of Captain Rogers'. Sergeant Barnes —"

Well, that was disappointing.

"—so that's how they knew about HYDRA's plan to make all those people in Vegas into Hulks."

Zemo masked his thoughts at that revelation too. If HYDRA had had that technology from the beginning… Something was not adding up.

"And then we learnt that the Hulk and Black Widow were involved and had a child."

Zemo almost lost control of the interrogation at that point, filled with disbelief…and anticipation. Oh?" he deadpanned.

"Yes!" Fortean yelled desperately, wanting this man to believe him so that he would leave before it was too late. By the clock on the wall behind his would-be murderer, the soccer game would be over in about half-an-hour. With that in mind, he hurriedly continued. "There was a mix-up and the baby, a girl, was on the Avenger's plane. They dropped her and the Black Widow off on an empty building and then headed off to fight the Hulks. The General contacted me to say that he was sending in men to capture the kid for leverage..." he paused, "and she killed them all!" he spat. "Not just the first troops, Black Ops, but regular loyal American soldiers too. Lots of them."

Given his own motivations, Zemo had to respect that. He knew all too well the wrath of a parent.

"She killed all of the initial squads herself, and then blew up the building and the bodies, and used a voice synthesizer to mimic Ross's voice to make it appear that they'd died fighting the hulklings, and sent the rest out as support for the Avengers," Fortean continued to rave. "Then afterwards SHIELD used their influence to make her cover story believable. Now, everyone at the Pentagon who knows the truth are worried that the Hulk or the Black Widow are coming after them."

 _As the world's most infamous spy, they're probably also afraid of her dumping more secrets for the public_ , Zemo thought dryly. _She's already made WikiLeaks look like a joke._

Still, an Avenger killing US citizens, and in the numbers that Fortean was implying, the ensuing cover-up… Yes, he could make this work. And there was still the Winter Soldier and what he had supposedly done on December 16, 1991.

"Thank you for your time," he said pleasantly, and shot Fortean in the head.

There might have been more questions he could have asked, but it was best not to stick around too long.

 **XXX**

Unknown Location

A sole shadowy figure stood watching the news broadcast on a screen, which depicted a reporter standing in front of an angry crowd holding a variety of signs.

" _Protests continue against the lack of control over Inhumans_ ," she informed her audience over the yells in the background. " _While many still support the Avengers, it's clear that after the events in Las Vegas, many feel that President Ellis, and other world governments, need to take more assertive action to protect the people from the threats posed by both aliens and humans with powers. While public opposition to government control is still in place, claiming that the Avengers have done well so far, those supporting the need for this oversight are growing in number_.

 _"Moreover, leaked documents have hinted that the Avengers may have been_ responsible _for some of these previous tragedies, including New York, Sokovia, and Las Vegas. The presence of the Hulk alongside the Avengers, who was responsible for the attack on Johannesburg and battled Iron Man there, raises further questions, with more and more people demanding answers. This is—_ "

The figure turned off the screen, while nodding in satisfaction, while wondering when his partner would return from whatever he was doing.

 **XXX**

Stark Tower

"So, what do you say, Bruce?" Tony asked at last. "Fatherhood's made you into someone who could do it, and anyone would think twice about getting out of line with the Hulk."

His friend _sneered_ at that. "Don't tell me you don't know how incredibly moronic that'd be. The Hulk _cannot_ keep people in line; he just throws them wherever he wants them to be!"

Bruce did not accuse Tony of wanting someone he could influence in charge –if anything it would be Natasha pulling whatever strings there were— but he was still angry about the idea of being given any sort of authority just because of the threat of the Hulk hanging over everyone's heads.

He took a deep breath, and thought about it some more. Tony was someone who liked to play his cards face up, only keeping secrets if he thought it was for the person's own good (as Tony interpreted it).

He had not said anything about why Bruce had been hacking FRIDAY's computer records, or some of the other activities he and Natasha had been up to. Ergo, he probably did not know that Bruce and Natasha were _already_ gathering a superhero team.

Spider-Man. Ant-Man. Wasp.

All of whom were still committed to ensuring that the Avengers and other heroes did not enter into conflict. The second line of defense, while the Avengers continued to handle the external threats. Yet even with them, Bruce had refused a leadership role, and his wife was also uncomfortable with it despite being the most suited so far.

 _What_ the team was going to do, none of them knew. They all just wanted to be ready for the worst-case scenario: The Avengers at each other's throats.

Natasha would cheerfully attest to the value of having a hidden card, or gun, to play.

"Tony, you know, at the end of the day, I'm— I'm just not suited for that," Bruce finally said. "I'm not a leader, I don't know people well enough to tell what they're best for." Natasha did that. "And if we're bringing the Hulk into this, that'd just be waving a big stick. That's not what we want for this."

He looked down in surprise, and scooped up Laura who with only a little wobbling had walked up to him unnoticed. Staring Tony straight in the eye, he _willed_ for his friend to see his conviction in this. "I want Laura to have the best life possible, and Natasha and I have come to accept that means being there for her, to actually be her parents whenever we possibly can. She deserves that, because you never know when the next nightmare will raise its head."

The previous accusations about what Bruce had been up to went unaddressed, and Bruce knew he had to change the subject, and throw his friend off-balance, by throwing something juicy for Tony to latch onto. "Also, we're getting married."

"You know, if you'd timed that right, you would've seen an epic spit-take," Tony deadpanned. Then the billionaire was up on his feet and smacking Bruce on the shoulder while shaking his hand vigorously.

"I take it this means you're accepting the position as best man?" Bruce asked as he straightened his shirt after the enthusiastic good wishes, while Laura clapped and giggled at the excitement.

The proud, respected, and yes, feared, Iron Man froze at that, and for once his mouth was blissfully silent of any smart remarks. He maintained the silence until at last he swallowed and spoke a little low and gruffly. "I never really thought I'd get to do that. I mean, yeah, Rhodey and Happy, but no, I mean…"

With a flash of insight, Bruce realized just how deeply Tony appreciated their friendship. Carefully holding onto Laura, he stood up and gently put his hand on Science Bro's shoulder, eyes genuinely warm and proud.

And before the moment got too sappy, Laura started tugging on Bruce's leg, trying to bring to his attention the far more important fact that she had just wet her diaper.

 **XXX**

Barton Farm

Back when she had first joined the Avengers, Wanda had been haunted by dreams where she lost control of her powers and hurt those around her, even children. It had been Clint and Natasha who had helped her through this, but mainly the former, constantly working to help her realize that it had never happened, and never would. That she was stronger than she imagined, and that true strength came from the sort of self-control she had already grasped.

Now she sat on the couch in their living room while Lila rested herself against Wanda's legs. Cooper had taken off with her motorcycle keys so she couldn't leave. Probably because she said she did not know how long she would be staying. It made her want to wrap them up in a bone crushing hug…while stealing back her keys. It was her prerogative as the big sister.

The baby was napping upstairs, and Lila appeared to be enjoying herself reading "Captain Underpants," breaking the silence with only the occasional giggle. She and Cooper played games where the titular hero was a member of the Avengers, with Captain Underpants and their dad inevitably saving the day. And during recent visits Wanda had even overheard scenarios where _she_ was the hero who saved them all.

She would never forget that feeling when she had first caught them doing that…

Currently, the "hero" was wading her way through the Barton Family Cookbook. Not only did it include recipes the family had developed over the generations, but during his travels as an agent of SHIELD, Clint had collected many from all over the globe –he had even stocked the farm's cooler with herbs, spices, and other ingredients from nations Wanda had never even heard of— and of course the Bartons had further modified the instructions to their own tastes. Every meal was always mouthwatering, and Clint delighted in serving multiple dishes from all over the world. Right now, however, he was enjoying himself by drinking in the sight of his daughters peacefully relaxing together, with the sound of his wife doing something in the kitchen.

Pounding footsteps announced the return of Cooper Barton, having vanquished today's homework. Despite groans from all her children, and yes, that included Wanda and Clint, Laura had been firm that the young teen to finish his school assignments after he had released Wanda from his flying embrace. Only then could he play with his "big sister" some more. The look on his face, however, as he leaned over the back of the couch, warned the "big sister" that she was about enjoy the novelty of being teased by a younger sibling.

"So Waaaanda…" Cooper cheekily drew her name out. "Do you have a booooyfriend yet?"

"Why do you ask?"

"Do you? Do you? Do you?" Lila chirped up.

"No," she assured them.

"What about Vision?" Clint joked.

"No, though he has expressed an interest."

Hawkeye, the all-knowing, all-seeing, but not all-telling super-spy choked on his coffee. "Really!?"

"Yes," Wanda assured him. She used her powers to get him a napkin as he put the cup down. "I let him know, gently, that I wasn't interested in being with someone at the moment, and he accepted it. I can still feel his thoughts sometimes though."

"Is it because he's a robot?" Copper asked in a more mature tone.

"No, in some ways he more human than most. Even if Vis still needs to learn how to use doors."

"Sounds like a lot of men I used to know," Laura Barton noted as she walked in with more snacks.

"So, no boyfriend, huh?" Clint confirmed. "You sure?"

Wanda pointed a finger at him. "You just want the chance to threaten some boy about treating me right as practice for when Lila begins dating."

"Nah," he assured her with a grin, "I'm too obvious. They'll be expecting me and be on their best behaviour…and they'll never see your Mom coming," jerking his thumb at an innocently smiling Laura Barton.

"Did I ever tell you how Clint and I met?" the housewife asked, patting Clint on the shoulder, and he mock shuddered.

She still shot Wanda a contemplative look.

"Are you sure though? You've mentioned Vis a lot when we've talked on the phone…"

Shrugging, Wanda took a long sip from her tea as she sorted her thoughts, perversely enjoying the experience of prying parents. "We hang out together a lot, and do a lot with each other, but it's partially because we're both a little bit of the outsiders of the group." She waved her hand reassuringly at Clint's concerned expression. "Everyone's older than us, and frankly, with this new team we're the only real civilians. Bruce and Natasha's free time is taken up with Laura, Sam and Steve are best buddies with each other, Rhodes has different interests, all the SHIELD people're always busy… you get what I mean. Sif's okay, but she's just joined us, and is still working to fit in. She spends most of her time with Steve."

"Sif's the Asgardian who took over for Thor, right?" Laura clarified.

"Yeah. Anyways, so Vision and I just started hanging out together, and I ended up helping him fit in more. So yeah, just friends." Wanda tapped Cooper on the nose, "Just remember that just because a boy and a girl hang out, doesn't mean they're going to start dating."

He laughed, "Yeah I know. It's like Aunty Nat and Dad."

"Exactly," Clint agreed. "Although it's more because Aunty Nat was always more interested in your Mom than me."

"Daaaaaaad!" Lila cried.

Clint was laughing too hard, so Laura spoke up. "But yes, she's your Aunty because she's your Dad's best friend."

"And she knows that I'm the only one who can handle you," Clint teased, earning himself a few sharp jabs in ribs. "Ow!

Giggling, Lila called out her own thoughts. "Just like how Uncle Bruce does whatever Aunty Nat says!"

Clint noted how Wanda did not tense at the sudden mention of the Hulk's milder alter-ego, which seemed to confirm that everything was alright between them. "Yes," the Scarlet Witch agreed, tapping her chin thoughtfully. "All the men with the Avengers seem to be finding women to put them in their place." She tapped her chin thoughtfully. "If I wanted to, I bet I could make Vision boost his density so much he would collapse into the ground."

"Just be sure that whoever you find, you're happy with them. Willing to spend forever with them," Laura firmly lectured, and something in her voice made Wanda realize just how emotional Mom and Dad's early relationship must have been.

 _Just see the love and happiness they have now, and that they give to others like me_ , she contemplated.

Looking at the clock, Laura decided it was time for her husband to start dinner, and given how fast Cooper had completed his homework, she should probably go read his answers over. With some effort, Wanda got out from under Lila to go help her dad, and pick up some tips for her own cooking, while Lila skipped along behind to watch.

 **XXX**

Stark Tower

After changing Laura's diaper, Bruce came back to find Tony and FRIDAY discussing wedding gifts, such as giving Natasha an improved version of her Widow Bites that would also shoot out Taser disks. "Like the sci-fi ninja that she is," Tony crowed.

Seeing his friend back, Tony pushed the weapon design hologram to the side for later.

"Alrighty then," Tony declared, clapping his hands together in a businesslike manner. "So, we've gotta plan your bachelor party. And don't think I missed that eye roll." He mock-scowled at a sheepish Bruce. "This'll be your last night as a free man! And of course, you've got to have everything settled for your honeymoon!" The last bit included a conspiring wink.

In response, Bruce impulsively looked down to check that Laura was distracted and not listening to what he knew and dreaded was to come.

"Bruuuce…" Tony asked with concern, and his friend flinched a little in anticipation, "You do know what happens on the honeymoon, right? And you and Red have been living together for a while now."

"Uhm, yeah."

"…Please tell me that in all the time you've been living with one of the most beautiful women alive, that you two've—" Tony stopped and visibly glanced at toddler, "—hidden the zucchini! Lots of times! All over the place! In places none of us wouldn't think of using! Then took a nap, and started all over again!"

"Tony…Natasha and I don't really…" Bruce stammered, trying to resist the urge to tell his friend it was none of his business."What is wrong with you people?!" Tony yelled in incomprehension as he threw his arms up. "That's it! FRIDAY, Pepper's out, right?"  
"Yes, Boss."  
"We'll let the other guys know that for the bachelor party, I'm taking Bruce to a brothel!"

"Tony…" Bruce groaned, knowing that he was going to have to put his foot down to avoid a mess. Hopefully, in a way that did not insult his friend… _If all else fails, I'll just take Laura and go and leave him to figure it out for himself._

 **XXX**

Unknown location

"Got some news. Someone's been busy, digging into Banner and Romanoff's activities at Vegas. Not afraid to leave behind some bodies either. I stepped in to help keep SHIELD catching up to him, so we could decide what to do."

"Well, well. Zemo himself, is it? What _are_ we going to do with him?"

 **XXX**

Stark Tower

"Look, Pepper, I wasn't going to hire all the best hookers and bring them to the Tower for me!" Tony pleaded at the image of his girlfriend on the holoscreen. "It's for Bruce! Honest! Why else would I do something like this!?"

Groaning and rolling his eyes, Bruce stepped forward so that Pepper could see him. As grateful as he was for Pepper, and despite all of the work he and Natasha were doing, he still hated confrontations, and the idea of causing a fight between his best friend and the woman he loved just made him sick. Besides, Pepper was just saying what he knew he would have inevitably had to have said.

"Uhm, so you had FRIDAY set up to tell you this?" Bruce asked to try and buy some breathing space.

"It actually predates even the Boss' Iron Man days," the rat-fink AI informed him. "Something she asked JARVIS to do for her after she thought a prank someone was pulling was for real."

" _And_ after I overheard you planning to do it for real for Rhodey," Pepper snapped.

"Oh. Right."

Cutting to the chase before Tony put his foot too deeply into his mouth, Bruce finally tried to take charge of the situation. "I took Tony by surprise, and he overreacted. That's all, Pepper. Nothing was going to happen."

"Oh, it's about us not having sex, right?" a knowing voice broke in.

"Romanoff…?" Stark hesitantly asked, despite having fully recognized the voice.

"Bruce likes you too much to tell you that whatever we do in private is our own business," the image of the ex-assassin broke in on the screen as Pepper obligingly angled her phone to show the other redhead dressed in a casual hoodie. "But for your own good, Stark, get the message that our sex life is our own business, so can it!

"Besides, if you want to spend any time with your niece, idiot, then filling the penthouse with hookers while she's there isn't going to get you any points with Mom and Dad." Then she looked over at Bruce through the screen a flashed a smile that almost made Tony jealous of him. "Sorry, I know you'd handle it, but there's better use of your time. You guys having fun besides this stupidity?"

"More or less," he grinned back, "and you?"

"Everything's going great, and we should be back for tonight."  
"Looking forward," he promised.

The implied threat also helped remind Tony of something. _Oh yeah, and Bruce's little giant rage monster also comes up whenever his heart rate shoots up. Right. Terrible idea. Maybe I've had enough brandy for the day…?_

Hiding his embarrassment while trying to look suave, he turned to ignore Romanoff and face Bruce. "Okay, no going to the brothel or bringing in hookers. But seriously, man," trying to look like the wounded party, "while you're with me, your fiancée is with Pepper? Don't you know how dangerous that is for me?"

"Oh don't worry," his girlfriend smirked. "Been lots of fun, just the two of us. She's even being telling me about how _she_ proposed." Her smile widened at the look of horror on Tony's face. "Behave." With that, the link was closed.

Gulping, Tony muttered something that sounded like: "Commitment…"

"Thought you guys were past that," Bruce questioned.

"Little trouble with keeping out of the suits," Tony admitted. "Kinda promised I'd give them up; still working on that." Clapping his hands, he was back to his old self. "So! Where can we go that's fun, and still take a baby? I know!"  
"We're not allowed in a lab with her, and FRIDAY monitoring her doesn't count," Bruce informed his friend, who deflated.

Tony stopped to think some more before snapping his fingers. "I know just the place!"

 **XXX**

Wedding Store

"Unreal," Pepper sighed, hanging up the phone.

"At least he's entertaining," Natasha flatly noted.

"And if he'd actually had dumped a load of hookers on your fiancé?" Pepper queried while raising an eyebrow.

"You really think either of them would risk the wrath of the Black Widow?" reassured Natasha, while stripping off the hoody she had thrown over her white dress. "As for Tony, since he's a friend, or a friend of Bruce at least," she smiled cheekily, "the least I could do would be to kill him while he's still busy enjoying himself with all of the lovely ladies he brought over. He wouldn't even know what happened, with his final moments being happy ones." Then her grin grew sardonic as she threw Pepper a knowing look. "Which would be far more merciful than whatever you'd do to him."

"Not funny."

"No, you're right, he's been good. Surprisingly. Besides, then I'd have to kill all the witnesses."

Joking aside, both women knew that Bruce was too responsible to let the situation get out of hand like that, especially with Laura around.

Ignoring an Avenger talking about committing murder, Maria Hill was busy trying on her own dress, while Jane Foster was taking a picture to text to Wanda. The astrophysicist and not-so-former spy were guests who had somehow never been invited to a wedding before, but Maria and Wanda were going to be bridesmaids, with Pepper as the Maid of Honour.

The material from all of the dresses came from a small and isolated Chinese village which went to great lengths to ensure that the location of the world's finest silk for the wealthiest elite remained a dark secret.

Natasha, of course, had known about it, and had traded her discretion for several bundles of it, letting them maintain their profitable monopoly. There had been a slight hiccup when the isolated village had thought their personal hitman would be capable of silencing the leak, but fortunately for them Natasha had not wanted to ruin the wedding atmosphere so she had only broken his legs. Their rapid creation at the hands of France's finest seamster, as well as his discretion, had cost a small fortune paid with wealth she had skimmed off of various individuals she had killed. Over time she had invested a reasonably large sum, while benefiting from access to SHIELD sources, Pepper's own insight, and Stark's AIs. She always kept Fury, and now Steve, up to date on her finances (except for the account numbers), and they knew she only used it as one more tool for her tradecraft, so they turned a blind eye to it.

Pepper, Wanda, and Maria's dresses were a rich, dark purple flowing flowed down from the shoulder straps to the ankles. A long silken scarf looped twice across their chests, cascading over their shoulders, down their backs, and then flowing forward over to rest on their forearms. The bouquet of pink roses finished the simple yet elegant presentation.

"So how many are coming again?" Pepper asked, resplendent in her own outfit.

"Avengers, significant others," Natasha vaguely answered while gesturing at Jane, and then to Maria, "and a few SHIELD agents. Just a small crowd."

"Doesn't sound small if you're bringing in SHIELD," Jane said, channeling some of her disapproval of the organization.

"So, Natasha, you aren't going to wear that same wedding dress you kept using?"

Scandalized, Jane and Pepper turned to glare at the bride-to-be, who was examining what she was wearing with feigned disinterest.

"You've been married before!?"

"And wore the same dress!?"

"It was for an undercover op," Natasha explained, "to get close to the mark, and it was easier to keep using it. And no, I'm not wearing _that_ in front of all those people and Bruce," she icily informed Maria. "That dress was to make me look like a trophy wife, showing everyone at the wedding just what my future husband to be was going to enjoy and they weren't."

"Probably for the best," Maria calmly agreed, while the other two ladies looked a little uncomfortable at the reminder of Natasha's earlier line of work. "So when did you get rid of it?"

"…"

"Natasha?"

"A few days before I approached Bruce at the bar, which was the night after we retrieved Loki's scepter," she admitted with a little blush blossoming before she could wipe it away. Feeling a little embarrassed, and nervous of any 'encouragement' from her friends, she went on, "I also destroyed all pictures of it, including all of SHIELD's copies." She rather enjoyed the flicker of concern on her ex-boss' face as she wondered how much Natasha knew about the real SHIELD supposedly kept hidden from the Avengers.

Changing the subject, Maria gestured at the dress Natasha was now wearing, watching her examine her reflection in the three-way mirror. "So this is the winner?"

A smile lit up Natasha's face. "Yes."

Trained and conditioned to use her body as either a weapon or tool of seduction as freely as possible, Natasha's taste in fashion was geared towards that which accentuated every curve of her perfect body. This outfit, however, was subtly looser, preventing it from being an act of seduction. _Bruce will love it_ , she knew. _This is for him, and this is my way of saying I know that he doesn't love me for my body. Besides,_ and she turned to admire her reflection, enjoying the work of art, _changing it in any way might ruin it!_

Tracing over the white waist were curving patterns made of rich, cream tinted lines that wove together to make one indefinable but eye-catching image. It started off thin from her left hip to her right, where it grew wider as it gently climbed up her back to end at her left shoulder where it met two pink roses identical to the ones the maid of honour and bridesmaid carried. To finish the apparel, she wore white gloves that covered past her elbows, and while the veil covered her head down to her lower back, it was light enough to hide nothing of the shine in her rich green eyes.

Absently, Natasha pulled her hair back from her face to see how it would look like in a bun, although of course, she had a more artistic finishing design in mind, and liked what she saw. _Maybe a French twist for the finish…?_

"You have to wear heels," Pepper reminded her.

"Of course, just as long as I can readily kick them off," a distracted Natasha assured her, while mentally choosing weapons she could conceal.

 **XXX**

Outer Space

Earth's Orbit

Stark orbital station

(Two weeks later)

Tony's final idea for Bruce's bachelor party was a smash hit.

All the male Avengers were there, drinking away with some of the SHIELD personnel from Avenger's HQ too. Even Bucky was present, his remaining arm handcuffed to Steve for safekeeping and enduring comments from Tony about their sexual preferences.

"So, this is going to be a SWORD facility?" Sam was wondering, referencing the program being made to defend the Earth from extraterrestrial threats. "And you run it with robots?"

"Stop asking and start drinking!" Tony ordered as he handed over another beer. Empty cans were scattered about the floor, and the billionaire was basking in how his scientific brilliance had made it possible for all of these people to safely travel to space to make it possible. _Not to mention being a perfect publicity stunt, showing off what my arc reactors can power, along with sending that whole 'vision of the future' thingy for people, saying that if I can make technology to make a drunken party in space possible, then who knows what else we can accomplish!_

At least, that was what he was going to tell anyone who asked instead of 'It sounded too cool to pass up!'

Walking lightly in lower gravity, he made his way to where Bruce was holding baby Laura up to the window to look at the stars, with her chubby little fists trying to seize the pinpricks of light. Scattered diamonds that were unobstructed by city lights. "Maybe someday," Bruce whispered. "Science is taking us to so many different places, and your Uncle Thor and Lady Sif come from stars like that. Maybe you'll get to travel to them."

Catching the sound of Tony approaching, he turned to throw the man a smile. "Thanks for making sure she could come."

"No worries," Tony gestured dismissively. "Like I already told you, we've already tested it all for SWORD personnel and even with puppies." In the event of an emergency, automated suits would deploy and cover everyone like one of Tony's personal suits of armour, more than capable of keeping them alive for hours while one the many, many redundant safety measures was deployed to save them all within seconds. In Laura's case however, she would be enfolded within a special baby carrier that could survive orbital re-entry without her even getting a bruise. Bruce decided he did not want to know how his friend had tested that last part.

"Pity Legolas couldn't make it," Tony added, sounding a little miffed.

"He had work to do that he couldn't put off," Bruce shrugged.

"Yeah about that— I get why you're in a rush, and don't feel comfortable going to Vegas to do it." Tony could understand wanting your friends, or "family" present, too, "But, how're you pulling it off? Yeah, we men've got my personal tailor for the suits, but I'd a thought even old red would've wanted more time to choose a wedding dress?"

"She's already got one from her previous marriages," Bruce answered easily, enjoying Tony's stunned look.

"She's wearing a dress from a previous wedding!?" he finally managed to say in his confusion.

Bruce just shrugged, lacking Tony's insight into the 'ways of women.' Besides, he found Natasha's reasoning strangely amusing. "She got married for one undercover job for SHIELD before killing him," he smiled at the look Tony threw him, "and while she loved the dress, she hated the whole shopping bit. So, she kept it for all the similar missions that came afterwards. I think she said it was one of those modern ones that look more like business suits."

"You worry me, my friend," Tony honestly told him.

Giving a little chuckle at his friend's 'joke,' Bruce went on. "So long as she's happy, I'm happy. Anyways, now it's just a matter of pushing through the bridesmaid dresses. Don't ask me how that's going, though. I'm staying out of it."

Taking another sip of brandy, Tony decided that was a wise policy. "But Legolas will still make on time to the main event?"

"Yep."

"Well, he's still missing a once in a lifetime party," Tony remarked, taking in the panorama. "And not like there's gonna be any trouble with you, Capsicle, and Barnes acting as the designated drivers home." Truthfully, it would be FRIDAY flying the rocket back for re-entry, since while Tony intrinsically trusted his own creations, they were not at the point where he trusted other people to manage them.

Back home, Natasha, Pepper, Sif, Maria Hill, and some other ladies were having an even quieter bachelorette party, without the risk of Tony getting drunk enough to wonder what it would be like to cut the artificial gravity on a bunch of drunk people (answer: floating vomit), or too much testosterone in the air. Sure, there had been the temptation to celebrate by going to beat people up, bring out some strippers –Natasha had joked (maybe) about sending up a bunch of male strippers to the bachelor party, but Bruce had reminded her that Tony would just roll with it to tease everyone else—, party on the SHIELD helicarrier without telling anyone they were coming beforehand, or some other wild stunts, but in the end, they had known that everyone just needed something quiet.

They'd been through too much lately.

Just friends and family, together to celebrate. Praying for a bright future for all…

Was that too much to ask for?

Washington, D.C.

Hotel Room

It was impossible to defeat the Avengers, or the Hulk for that matter, head on, so only a fool would try. Many of those who had already tried and had failed to realize this truth had been powerful in their own right. Zemo was no fool.

He was alone, untraceable, and was working to destroy them from the inside. Make them turn upon each other with violence, so that whatever bonds they held for each other were consumed. And the keystone to them all, rested in one little child.

 _I wonder if you'll understand?_ Zemo thought, staring at a picture of Dr. Banner. _If you'll appreciate how far a man will go to avenge the woman he loved and their child, while I'm targeting yours?_

Probably not, but it was largely academic. Zemo had no intention of living long enough to personally experience what it was like to be face to face with the Hulk. However, with any luck he would live long enough to see what the Hulk did beforehand.

For his plan to work, it was not enough for Zemo to just manufacture the belief that the Avengers were responsible for the deaths, however unintentionally, of the Black Widow and the little girl. No, to utterly destroy them, he would have to do far more.

He would release the truth that she killed America soldiers, generating public and political pressure on them, constraining their actions, and stressing their relationships, all to help them become more rash and vulnerable. _If I can access the Winter Soldier, and find proof that he killed Iron Man's parents, I can create multiple conflicts with each other. And once the first punch is thrown, they'll never be able to take it back_.

There was still a lot of work to do, information to gather and planning to be done, but finally things were looking up. It was all possible now.

Absently he pulled out his cell phone and replayed his last message from his family.

"... _Oh you should have seen his little face, just try, okay? I'm going to bed. I love you._ "

 **XXX**

 **Author Notes:**

 **I admit, the scene with Laura and the stars was inspired by an episode of Dragon Ball Super, but I have no regrets.**

 **The dresses are inspired by the Star Wars Expanded Universe wedding between Luke Skywalker and Mara Jade, the latter of whom strongly resembles Natasha.**

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 **Next chapter: "Wedding 2.0"**

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 **Please Review, and I will get back to you!**


	28. Wedding 20

For better or worse, Marvel owns all of this stuff, not me.

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Many thanks to my wonderful Beta, Jesuslovesmarina, who writes some pretty cool stories. Go read them!

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Chapter 28: Wedding 2.0

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 _Previously: While tensions rise over the issue of Registration, Bruce and Natasha announce their wedding (secretly their second) together, to help the Avengers develop stronger bonds._

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"… _Well, Let me tell you about_ my _wedding_.

" _It was a_ double _ceremony, conducted by Immortus, master of the_ limbo dimension, _in the shade of a lovely old_ tree, _which the_ other _bride was marrying_.

" _This was after I'd fought_ Dormammu, _of course. And helped my husband_ self-actualize— _he needed to get in tune with his_ head crystal.

" _I suppose that was just the sort of thing you_ did _back then. It was a very…oh, what's the word?  
_ " _A very_ groovy _time_."

-Wanda Maximoff

"… _Yeah, I, uh…I think we were going to go with a more_ traditional _wedding_ …"

-Billy Kaplan

("New Avengers (2015) by Al Ewing)

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Westchester, New York

Outside of the small church, everyone who had already arrived was chatting to pass the time while things were still being set up. The couple's eagerness for getting married in such a short period of time, omitting even a rehearsal, had predictably meant that some planning had gone askew, so there were some delays while things were being settled.

"So there are some things you can explain to me about Midgardian culture, but just not around Stark?" Sif tried to clarify, a little uncomfortable in her light blue dress. As a newcomer, she was only a guest, not a bridesmaid, but was still expected to dress in something nicer than her armour or leather outfit. Natasha had won her over however by demonstrating how the material was easily torn off for freedom of movement, and Sif was free to wear all her gear hidden underneath.

After all, there was a running bet on whether some poor fool would attack the wedding or not.

"Yes, there are some things we've worked hard to keep him from finding out about. JARVIS, and now FRIDAY—the computer artificial intelligences—the talking voices—I mean—"

Sif nodded to indicate her understanding, refraining, once more, from pointing out that she was from a far more advanced society. _Granted we estranged from using such devices because we know they dull our warrior's edge. I wonder if Thor warned them about all the other races whose creations turned upon them?_ It was doubtful he had— the young prince tended to skip galactic politics and such.

"—keep Tony from hearing about them," Steve continued. "Michael Bay movies so he doesn't start building gigantic transforming robot cars just because. We also banned him from manga after he started building an elaborate holographic arena just to see if Yu-Gi-Oh is as fun as it looks. Fury had to intervene when he was bugging Bruce about creating an island inhabited by dinosaurs, prehistoric animals I mean, or Pokémon because Pepper said Pikachu was cute…" Steve paused with a disturbed expression. "There might be more, but I think I successfully repressed any memories of them."

Nodding again, Sif acted as if she fully comprehended everything he had said, while planning to ask Steve in greater detail later when there was no one else to see her confusion. He had proven very empathetic about such things. Still, it was clear that this Stark was as brilliant as he was overly impulsive, which made her warier about his frequent trips to join his former teammates and debate over something called "Registration." As a sworn vassal of Odin, she had made it clear that she was free to make her own decisions. _If they came to blows I'd probably help Steve_ , she admitted, _if only because I believe that Thor would do the same._

Off to the side, Clint was catching up on the gossip with some of Stark Industries employees who were retired *cough* active *cough* SHIELD agents, who worked to provide support for the Avengers. "She did what!?" Clint laughed as he learnt about another couple he knew. "Man, I thought they'd never get their act together! Who won the pool?"

"Jerry, Jerry Palmer, former Level 4 stationed in the Triskelion," one woman answered. "Got the date they finally admitted their feelings for each other spot on, though he admits it was a lucky guess."

"We had to double-check of course," another chipped in. "Paul and Lisa tried to claim that they did it during the HYDRA attack, but we found some footage to show it was actually on their last joint mission together beforehand."

"Were you acting as a matchmaker, boss? Again?" Clint threw at Fury, who was off to the side with Maria Hill.

His _ex_ -boss gave them a quick once over with his sole eye, evidently grasping the nature of the conversation. "I'd _only_ do _that_ if I thought they'd still be able to stay professional, even willing to let the other die if it meant saving the world."

"Otherwise, one of the pair would be reassigned to our Arctic base, and the other to that one in the Sahara for inter-service fraternization," Hill added, deliberately pitching her voice so they could not tell if she was joking or not.

"Notice he never actually answered," Clint stage whispered, not at all off-put by the chilly responses. "As if he never knows what's going on. Everywhere."

"I still missed HYDRA being right under my nose, so let's hope I wasn't spending my time on matchmaking," Fury deadpanned, and pointedly turned his back on them and the conversation to continue talking to Hill. "Is there anyone else we can bring in for what's happening in Africa?" The massive, Avengers-backed project to land a comet on the continent to bring water and resources to the people was still underway; made possible, safe, and actually beneficial thanks to Stark and SHIELD's advanced science. So far, their joint efforts and vast technological resources had averted the various ongoing potential environmental damages. SHIELD agents, and the Avengers until they had recalled to focus on resurgent threats, had also worked to deal with various social, political, and outright violent obstacles that had tried to prevent that aid reaching where it was needed.

The massive public display had done much to encourage greater acts of charity and support for the poor countries there, as well as to portray the Avengers as more than just fighters and vigilantes in the eyes of the public. Unfortunately, the Battle of Las Vegas had severely compromised such sentiments. Moreover, the continued success required ongoing SHIELD commitment to the region to keep the entire project from collapsing.

"I thought this was supposed to be a small wedding; you know, a dozen, tops," Wanda observed. "We've easily got over thirty here."

"Yes, well," Vision answered, giving a cheerful nod towards Dr. Helen Cho, "it is a small wedding in regards that it is kept private from the rest of the world. The marriage of two Avengers would be a major social event to most people."

"Okay, true," she admitted. "And it spares them from having to deal with gossip and theories over stuff like why Tony is the Best Man, or having two groomsmen and bridesmaids and why they were chosen."

"Precisely. The quieter the better."

"So their new name will be Romanoff-Banner?" Jane Foster asked in surprise.

"That's right," Dr. Selvig chortled. "His idea apparently, saying he knows who wears the pants in the family."

Jane took a moment to think of how "Odinson-Foster" sounded, when she thought of a joke. "What if Laura marries someone else with a hyphenated name?"

"Ooh, like Stark-Rogers?" Darcy Lewis teased. "Then it would Romanoff-Banner-Stark-Rogers!"

"Say that to Cap or Tony," Rhodes butted in. "It'll be hilarious!"

"I'd change my name if it was going to be that long," Sam added, carrying on the humour.

Looking around, Jane leaned towards the Avengers. "The rest are all SHIELD, right?" she whispered.

"Pretty much," Rhodes answered in his normal voice. The spies would not be concerned about her knowing.

"But I thought they were all busy hunting for whoever caused the attack in Vegas, or keeping that project in Africa going!"

"Yeah," chirped up Darcy. "I'd heard that support was really getting cut back."

Sam just shook his head. "We lost some support, but not as much as the media would have you think. Every country in Africa is publicly enthusiastic in endorsing it, and with Stark Industries backing it we're doing fine. But everyone's got to have a rest or they break, so that's what a bunch of people here are doing: going to a wedding as part of their vacation." In truth, SHIELD had been pretty strained, especially since they were simultaneously hunting for the Appendix while providing the covert (and sometimes overt) support to keep the Avenger's massive act of aid going.

"Is it because of Bruce?" Jane asked. "I mean, the whole world now knows he's with the Avengers, and after Vegas people are even more wary of him."

"Yeah, that's been a problem," Rhodes admitted. "But we also released how he's responsible for a bunch of recent scientific advances, like those new prosthetics, which has helped alleviate it a bit."

 **XXX**

A shiny and exclusive car heralded the arrival of Tony Stark and Pepper Potts. Pepper was a bit quieter as she blended in, automatically gaging everyone's mood and behaviours regardless of how genuinely happy she was to see them all. The maid of honour traded greetings and compliments, and beamed every compliment her dress drew.

Meanwhile, the best man moved through the crowed with charm and ease, and while almost every guest was immune to it, they still appreciated the sincerity in his words and respected his light suggestions.

Then Tony found himself looking Steve Rogers in the eye.

Both men felt themselves stiffen, for despite the peace offering of a Stark Industries arm for Barnes –although not until former Winter Soldier was proven mentally sound, and officially cleared for any crimes committed on behalf of HYDRA while under mind control—the mood between both men had become increasingly tense since Las Vegas, exchanging only angry or chilly words between them.

Tony was no longer debating his support of government control over those who were Enhanced or born with special abilities. He was now actively supporting it. His efforts to convince everyone else during drop-ins to Avengers HQ had culminated in Wanda abruptly storming away from another "discussion," stuffed whatever clothes were closest to hand into a knapsack, and taking off on her motorbike.

They had purposely avoided each other at the bachelor party, especially with Barnes present, but right now neither man felt like dodging the issue.

With a flick of his eyes and a tilt of his head, Tony communicated his desire for a private conversation between them.

Twenty seconds later they were standing off to the side while everyone else tried not to look their way. Steve patiently looked around while judging no one was within earshot, while Tony fiddled with his phone to make sure there was no electronic surveillance.

"I'm probably going to end up in prison if I sign these Accords," Tony began, successfully getting Steve's attention, and their eyes met. "I'll hack into something I'm not supposed to, or I'll fly off and do something that I've been forbidden not to, because that's who I am. My SHIELD file said I'm a textbook narcissist, and I don't deny it. And yes, I've got some serious control issues, too. For years, between the government, the military, SHIELD, whoever— I was too useful to slap down, but too volatile to risk taking their eyes off me. They all knew it was only a matter of time I screwed up too big to be ignored. Yet ever since I put on that suit, I've done what I can to do better. But when I know I'm right, I'll do it, regardless of whatever anyone else says. And in that we're the same, except that you know you're right you do it from your gut, while I do it from my brains. No offense."

Looking down for a moment, Steve decided that the insults were indeed, largely, unintentional. Just Tony being Tony. Being referred to, however indirectly, as a narcissist stung, but enough to make Steve promise himself to reflect on it. "Guess what I'm supposed to ask then is: Why're you signing up then, Tony? Why are you putting yourself under their thumb when sooner or later you'll provoke them into arresting you? Or are you planning to be in charge of it?" he accused.

"Actually, I asked Bruce if he wanted to," Tony countered. "As for why I'm taking the risk, it's because whenever I do things on my own for too long, things fall apart. So badly that the consequences make it seem like government registration of people with powers, _leashing_ them, is a good thing. But there's the problem: it's not just me in this hero and villain gig, and I came to see I was making things worse. I'm afraid that all of us, the Avengers, make things worse. That's why I decided that the best way was to leave what we'd been doing behind –maybe the easiest way, like cutting the barbed wire when crawling through the trenches— and do the complete opposite of what I've been doing up to this point. Becoming part of a bigger organization to make sure there are checks and balances in place, to keep me from repeating my mistakes. And giving us the support and insight we need for the next time we have to save the world.

"SHIELD brought us together for just that reason, and it worked in New York. But imagine what we could've done if they'd still been intact enough to help us in Sokovia or Las Vegas. If it weren't for Thor bringing his friends to the party, and terrifying the whole world by showing just what kind of people're really out there, we'd have died. We can't count on that again."

The man who had been, and might once more be, Iron Man hardened his jaw, and Steve knew that his former teammate was now moving in for the kill.

"An old friend of yours said something while you were on ice; Winston Churchill. He went on about how lots of types of government have been tried, and that democracy is the worst form of government except for all those other ones that have been tried. You get what he was trying to say? If the governments, if the _people_ , say we should fall in line, then we should!

"First, because if we're not worthy of their trust, then we're not worthy of defending them. Second, otherwise it's just a few individuals declaring that they know what they're doing and that everyone else is wrong. And that they have the right to do whatever they want because of that!"

With that final shot, Tony turned and walked away, trying to hide how tense he felt, while Steve stared on silently. _Good tactics_ , Steve admitted. _Can't fire back here at the wedding or else I'm in the wrong_. He gave a small sigh. _And he might have a point. I've fought for democracy, but here I'm saying that democracy is in the wrong if the UN or the USA says that people with powers should be registered._

 _The thing is, I_ know _they can get it wrong_.

Steve thought of his Howling Commandos, who had been of various 'races,' and even sexual orientations. During their missions together, Steve had learned their stories of what they had endured, both historically and during what had been 'modern day' for them. Since waking up, Steve had investigated even further, and had learnt that while things had improved, there was a horrendous amount of discrimination, by citizens and by the laws that were supposed to _protect_ the public. Despite all that had been fought to ensure that _everyone_ had fair and equal rights, that they would be treated as equals. All of that could not be laid at the feet of HYDRA moles, but at the feet of actual men in power.

How would those with powers, more people who were "different," be treated? Be abused? In the name of security and control. What laws would be passed, and who would decide what missions were acceptable for the Avengers or not? Already he could see the media feeding on fears of the Enhanced, when most just wanted to live a quiet life in peace.

 _Except that Tony's right that the alternative will be worse._ Could _be worse,_ he amended. Battling for rights, the right to save and protect people, would be just that: a battle. Violence. Violence that could spill out of control. _But what happens if we don't stand up for ourselves?_ Steve worried.

Then every hair on the back of his neck rose up.

Spinning around, he near flinched at the sight of the cold, dark glare the mother in only her hoodie and sweatpants was shooting him. "How dare the two of you do this at our wedding!?" Natasha hissed. "What does it take to make the two of you realize that you're trying to divide the family we've all created!? Doesn't that mean anything to you!?"

He started to try and explain himself, but she railroaded over him, her image actually enhanced with the contrast from her subtle make-up and flawless hairstyle. "I'm going down the aisle in less than an hour, but I'm not even in my dress. Why? Because I got a call—"

Steve wondered who had ratted Tony and him out. Siccing Natasha on them like that was low. "—that you two were out arguing again, so I had to throw it off and come out here. And I'm _this_ close to just shooting the kneecap of first one of you I see, just to solve this whole thing! Because _that's_ what you're pushing us towards if this keeps us! Stupid, meaningless violence!"

Natasha Romanoff, soon to be Natasha Romanoff-Banner, did not rant and rave. Ever. So Steve knew that either she was acting for maximum drama and impact, or she honestly was that angry and ready to lash out.

"Registration is imperfect, but so is running around on our own! That's why it's the grown-ups' job to find a way to make it work. Because so help me, Steve –or you, Tony, you little eavesdropper!—" she snapped, and Steve knew that the man in question was giving a guilty start behind him, "if you two break our family up, ruin that for Laura and the rest of us, I'll never forgive you!"

With that she turned and slipped out of sight before anyone even realized it, as effortlessly as she had appeared.

Thirty seconds later, a familiar voice called out. "Is it safe to come out now? I'm not supposed to see her until we're at the altar."

"That's with the bride's dress, and it's safe," Pepper smoothly informed the newly arrived Bruce Banner, soon to be Bruce Romanoff-Banner to his complete contentment. "Wouldn't have thought you believed or cared so much about bad luck, Banner!"

More than one lady raised an eyebrow at the sight of Bruce Banner, sporting a fresh haircut and fitted up in a sharp black suit and vest, with the dark tie resting nicely over his white shirt. Simple, but on him you would never imagine that he had spent years of his life hiding in poverty.

"Others might get upset about that," Bruce shrugged, endlessly trying to keep everyone calm and relaxed.

And then he decided he didn't really care about that right now.

He straightened his shoulders and squared his feet, and where had once been a man nearly pathologically _ridden_ with guilt and self-depreciation, was now replaced with some far more serious.

Someone who had lost everything that mattered to him, and had been denied even the release of death, but had clawed his way out of his darkness thanks to the love and support of everyone here. The Avengers. Natasha and Laura might be his sun and stars –and dang, Nat loved that cheesy title— but it was the team itself which had given Bruce back his life. Both he and his wife.

"If you ruin our family," he hissed to Steve and Tony while gesturing at the crowd, "the _three_ of us," brown eyes flashing green, "will never forgive you."

Continuing to mirror his partner, he then left with equal care and silence.

.

.

.

The tension was broken by an awed whistle from the crowd which had been enraptured by every word Natasha had said; doubtlessly her words had intentionally been carried over to them, despite how Tony and Steve had walked away to avoid any casual eavesdropping. "I haven't even been gone for a year and it's this bad?" Clint wondered aloud, earning a smirk from Wanda and a hidden one from Fury. "Those two are the poster children for smothering their anger and other emotions, but you've both pushed them this far? What next?"

Deciding she had had enough, Wanda chose to answer. "That's because both Natasha and Bruce are tired of those two idiots acting like they're a hair's breadth from throwing their shield and repulsors at each other!" Her relationship with Stark had improved, but she was still having flashbacks to when the she and her brother had become caught between the Avengers' first big spat over whether to activate the Vision.

The cold look Bruce flashed was not as venomous as the one he had shot her that dark night, but she could tell the man was rapidly losing any tolerance as things spiraled back downhill every time they seemed to be fixing things.

"It's funny," Nick Fury mused, drawing everyone's attention. "Neither of you react well to threats. Makes you both dig your heels in more."

Stone-faced like Tony, Steve ground out, "So what're you getting at?"

"Romanoff teaches patience to cats," Fury drawled, "and Banner goes out of his way to make sure no one's even raising their voice around him. And yet somehow you're driving them both to this. Because it seems they've decided that polite words aren't enough anymore; that this is the only way you'll listen."

"We're straining at the edges," Wanda bit out. "We're supposed to be the heroes protecting people, but we're stuck wondering if we're going to be fighting each other! At this rate we'll tear each other apart before the Sokovia Accords even go public! And they know that! They're just sick and tired of trying to tell you that registration is as bad as going up against the governments pushing for it! But we can't find a solution that we all agree upon because you two keep polarizing everything! It's getting less about the Accords and more about your egos on what's the right thing to do!"

She sucked in another breath, but Clint gently touched her on her shoulder, and Wanda realized she was about to say some things she could not take back. "Work things out, before it's too late," she said instead. "Or else at the very least you'll both lose babysitting privileges with Laura."

Signaling the conversation was closed, Clint extended the crook of his arm to Wanda to lead her into the church. "Anytime you want to come join me in retirement, you don't even need to call ahead."

 **XXX**

"Who's the priest?" Wanda asked as everyone started to come inside and settle down into their seats, with the SHIELD agents on the bride's side, and the Avengers and various scientists as guests of the groom for simplicity. Clint led Wanda up to the front to introduce her directly.

"Wanda, this is Reverend Wagner. Kurt Wagner. Kurt, this is Wanda." Her last name was deliberately omitted for her own security.

"A pleasure," the man said with a smile that only highlighted the mischievous glint to his eyes. He looked impish almost, but he also seemed to wear a cloak of wisdom and kindness about him that made Wanda like him on the spot. Continuing with his German accent, "Especially given how all of you remembered my promise."

"Natasha and I had a mission to deal with a Eurasian crime lord—" Clint began to explain.

"I only moved here in the last few years," Kurt clarified.

"And Nat got injured, and Kurt gave us shelter, and kept the surviving crooks from finding us."

"Everyone knew what those men were doing, but no one could stop them," Kurt said with a modest shrug. "I was grateful that someone had helped, and I was glad to do my bit to repay our debt. Your friend was polite but firm about how she did not want me telling her how God could save her, but she did accept my offer to marry her off if she ever chose to. Though I can't remember how we got onto that topic."

"She probably did it to divert you, especially since when she's in pain she's a little more short-tempered and she really didn't want to hurt you," Clint bluntly informed him.

Unperturbed, Kurt finished the story. "A few days later they were recovered enough to leave, and I honestly never thought I'd see them again. Although it was very nice to learn they were still saving people when I saw the footage from New York," he smiled again. "And now here I am, demonstrating my own thanks for all of the lives she's saved."

"Yeah, if you'd have told us _this_ would be happening in the future," Clint gestured at all the chattering heroes and SHIELD agents gathered in public, "we'd have laughed so hard we'd have pulled our stitches." Sharing a private chuckle shared between the three of them, Clint and Wanda then walked back to take their places as a waiting bridesmaid and groomsman, with Tony and Steve soon joining them, both of whom were carefully acting cordial towards one another.

 **XXX**

Nick Fury took a moment to take in all of the colourful wedding gifts lying around the room. Despite the difficulty in finding something for a couple who were already financially well off and able to buy, or acquire, whatever they needed, there was a surprisingly large pile of them. In contrast, the plain envelope he held in one hand seemed almost trivial, but it held keys to a cabin in the Canadian woods.

"At least some people had more imagination for gifts than varying types of weapons," Pepper said as she brought in her own presents.

"All these superheroes have several armouries full of the most advanced weaponry stashed around the church already," he said with a slight smile. "We don't need any more right now." The Avengers, active and retired, were being discrete in placing their equipment, but they could all be armed within a matter of seconds, and all SHIELD personnel had firearms and had been briefed on where they could find the heavier stuff.

"Wine?" he asked while gesturing at what she was holding, making polite conversation, despite already knowing the answer.

"Natasha's favourite," she confirmed, "and Bruce likes it too." She also dropped off a large, brightly wrapped present with a letter tied to it. "New Widow Bites of course, but to give them something more original," Pepper elaborated, pointing the envelope, "two pairs of keys for their new car. Tony made it himself of course, with lots of odds and ends. Looks like a generic car, but holo-emitters can make it look like any other design."

"And if the disguise is knocked out, then they can still blend in since the base form is for a model that's a few years old," Fury finished. "Very nice. Defenses?"

"The child seat in the back, if fully activated, can withstand a direct missile strike. There's also a permit for all the weaponry; that was the hard part." Then Pepper gave him a knowing look. "What did everyone else get them?"

Seeing no need for false modesty, Fury began pointing at specific giftwrapped presents. "The support staff and retired," he gave her his own grin at that, aware there was no point in fooling her, "SHIELD agents got them various untraceable weapons, spy gear, scientific equipment and rare materials, all gifts from various well-wishing SHIELD agents and scientists. As for the Avengers, Rogers created some drawings and paintings of the two together. The Lady Sif was told she didn't have to do anything, but she used a knife to make a small carving of them."

"I wonder what kind of hobbies Thor has that he never mentioned?" Pepper smiled.

"Wilson and Rhodes chipped in together for some high-class ballet tickets, while Maximoff and Vision did the same for the opera tickets."

"I was wondering what Vision was withdrawing that money for. Although I'm guessing Wanda helped him figure out what to buy."

"And Barton's giving them babysitting coupons," Fury finished with a genuine smile. "Oh, and a sign, with a nice frame even," pausing to give the redhead a knowing look. "It says: 'I'm the boss of the house, and I have my wife's permission to say so'." Pepper chuckled along with him at that one.

 **XXX**

After a few minutes, Clint excused himself to go check in on the bride. "Nat? Nat!" he called as he tapped on the door to the bride's room.

"Come in!"

Gingerly he stepped in, not because his best friend was bashful, but it was the principle of the matter to respect her privacy. Especially today of all days. Sure enough, Natasha was in her undergarments as she worked her way into her dress, obviously of the finest material and tailoring, and he raised an appreciative eye at it. "I know it isn't your intention this time, but you're still going to turn heads as much as those movie stars in their flimsy things," he complemented. "But I thought you were going to wear the dress you got with SHIELD? The one you made me promise to never tell Laura about because otherwise she'd burn it?"

"I told Bruce I was wearing an older one," she admitted, as she finished getting into her outfit while checking the concealed gun holsters. "But for this I wanted something new. He deserves it." Then she shrugged. "Besides, it looks nice and I wanted to wear it for myself," she declared.

Chuckling, the archer nodded in understanding. "Far be it from me to argue about how a woman dresses!" Then he gave her hair a critical eye, which was artfully now piled up on top of her head despite how it had been as loose as ever when she had just been verbally tearing a strip off of both Iron Man and Captain America. "He'll appreciate it, and you definitely do look fantastic. I'm glad you're so happy with all of this," he added seriously, knowing the difficulty she had once had with coming to accept that there were things she could have in life because _she_ wanted to.

He then helped her with a few minor adjustments and making sure there was no lint or anything, while also discreetly scanning for listening bugs and checking the thickness of the walls out of the corner of his eye and with some casual taps.

"So what is it?" Natasha asked once her partner seemed satisfied, having applied her subtle make-up while he was working.

"I was hoping you could fill in Wanda about the real, first wedding, after this."

For a quarter second the Black Widow considered this. "She's that much of a Barton?"

"Yes." was the simple answer, utterly bereft of any elaboration or attempting to justify himself. Yet in that single syllable she also heard the promise that he would not take it personally if she said "No." Clint knew that Natasha and Bruce were quietly planning something, and given the performance the two of them had put on earlier, he knew for sure that it was related to keeping the peace amongst the Avengers, and yes, he could tell when Natasha was milking it for all it was worth. Above all else he could respect keeping secrets for the sake of family.

Still, he counted as Wanda as family too, believed in her, and felt that she deserved the same amount of faith from his ex-partner and her new one.

"I'll talk to Bruce, but if you trust her, then I do too," Natasha promised, looking away from the mirror to look at Clint directly and give him the special smile that had once been solely reserved for the Barton family.

"Thanks," he said with an equally warm smile.

 **XXX**

Finally, the wedding began.

SHIELD agent Cameron Klein, the loyal technician who had supported the SHIELD loyalists against HYDRA and later evacuating Sokovia, was playing the organ with a skill that threatened to bring more than one hardened warrior to tears.

First down the aisle was a repaired Dum-E, acting as ring bearer.

Pepper as the Maid of Honour, with Tony as the Best Man followed, with Wanda and Maria Hill as bridesmaids, and Clint and Steve as groomsmen.

 **XXX**

Avengers Headquarters

Holding Cells

Watching the live feed of the wedding, Bucky Barnes smiled as the bride was escorted down the aisle by Nick Fury, looking as proud as any father.

While still not cleared for being unsupervised, Romano— _Natasha_ had generously set up an encrypted feed so he could watch the event from his cell. Everyone, especially the ex-assassin himself, was taking no chances with clearing out any last hints of mind control without Captain America present and focused on him. They were still being cautious of course, with no hint of Laura in sight, doubtless in Barton's arms to keep her calm and watching her parents, but being able to watch such a private event was a demonstration of trust that Bucky knew he would forever cherish.

 _Good to see you got some true blue friends while I was gone, Steve._

 **XXX**

Westchester, New York

"Natasha Romanoff," Reverend Wagner intoned, "do you freely bind yourself to Bruce Banner, to be his companion, partner, aid and comfort for all the days of your life?"

"I do."

"And you, Bruce Banner, do you in turn promise to forsake all others, to be Natasha's comfort and confidant, friend, lover, and companion for your mortal days?"

"I do."

Facing one another, neither was aware of the world around them.

"When Bruce and I first met," Natasha confessed, "I pulled a gun on him. But as we came to know each other, he was the one to make me finally and fully appreciate that I deserved to be loved. Teaching me that it was worth the risk, worth whatever pain might come of it. Even if it was in his own clumsy, dorkish way," the tenderness in the last words were robbed of any bite. "Bruce, you see through me more than anyone, but despite what you know lurks beneath, all that you've given me is warmth and empathy. Being with you, be it for a day or an eternity, is more than I could ever have hoped for."

Bruce swallowed, but managed to get out the words that he had struggled for so long to find, to express his feelings.

"Natasha, every morning I wake and cannot believe how fortunate I am to be with you, to know you. You have a wit and love of life that the world could never rob from you, but I had in turn lost. You bring it back for me. When I'm with you, I find myself becoming the man _you_ believe I can be. I will spend every day of my life from this day forward striving to being worthy of you and the faith you've placed in me."

"You already are," she breathed, the acoustics of the church carrying her words to every ear, pushing even the most jaded of their friends to tears.

"Nor will I," he swore, grasping her hand

"Wait for honeymoon first," Tony reminded them, voice soft with repressed emotions.

They exchanged rings, which they had failed to do at the Barton farm.

"You may now kiss the groom!" Reverend Wagner said with a cheeky grin.

With a cheeky grin, Natasha pulled Bruce towards her for a long, passionate kiss, which he returned with equal fervor even as the audience laughed and cheered.

 **XXX**

Later

"So, not that anyone's complaining," Selvig asked, "but no wedding speeches?"

"Stark's too much of a windbag and Rogers too serious," Maria explained after taking a sip of her drink.

"How'd you get the catering done?" a bemused Jane Foster asked as she cast another longing look at the massive cake.

"SHIELD secrets," the ex-SHIELD Commander answered with a sly smile.

"Your secret base is under a bakery, isn't it?" Darcy quipped, but then noted how Maria seemed to be considering it. "Joking."

"It _would_ make events like this so much easier…"

 **XXX**

In the middle of the room, couples moved around together, while the lyrics of "As Time Goes By," sung by Dooley Wilson, filled the air.

Slowly, the bride and groom circled around each other in a slow dance, their gazes locked, husband and wife.

His entire universe was a fierce green, full of life and wit. Hers was a dark brown, full of empathy and warmth.

For all that the ceremony with the Barton family had been real, officialising the feelings they had already shared for one another, this wedding was with all of the rest of their extended family present, taking it to another level. Make it more 'real.'

"Bruce Romanoff-Banner," she rolled off her tongue. "I like the sound of that."

"Hmm. Has a nice ring to it," he teased.

"Yes, it does," she assured him with a smile. "I'm thinking of a big tattoo all across your chest to mark you as mine and mine alone. And then again across your back."

"Different designs on both sides, I hope," he invited.  
"Why of course. What else?" She cocked her head, "I'll have to do it myself of course; can't let anyone else putting their hands on your half-naked body." Grin turning saucy now, she purred, "I can draw something onto myself for you too of course, maybe something sciency, but since I'll be doing it, it'll have to be on my chest only. Can't reach my back."

While only mildly aroused by her flirting –a feat in itself—, he still chuckled at her humour, and then the perfect thing struck him. "What about just the words, 'We'll always have Paris'," he quoted from _Casablanca_.

"Dorkish, but tempting," she admitted, nuzzling her head against his neck for a moment without breaking step. A wave of pleasure rippled through her at how she could make jokes like that with him, without invoking any images of the Hulk, and how she thought he might react to tattoos.

When she pulled back, she gave him a more serious look. "Before I met Clint, I had never truly enjoyed a happy day. Nor an hour, or even a minute. With Clint," she paused briefly to silently indicate 'and his family,' before continuing, "I finally experienced what that was like. But even then, I only kept going out of a sense of obligation to him for sparing me, but also out of a need for some form of duty to fulfill, a remnant of my training. A desire to live, but I didn't really know what for, except maybe to atone for the crimes and atrocities I had committed. But if I'd died, I'm not sure how much I'd have really regretted it."

Bruce suppressed the chill going through him as he tried not to think of how many times he'd almost lost this chance to be with her.

"When Tony and I were working on Veronica," he thickly told her, "We weren't trying to make it strong enough to just stop the Hulk, but strong enough to kill me, if the need arose. That was _my_ intention, at least." Her muscles tensed under his hands, "I failed, and I'm so glad we did or we wouldn't have gotten this chance to be together."

They stared at each other in silence, leaning together to share a gentle kiss, each taking the pain and horrors from the other. Both partners took the others darkness, and locked it away inside them were it could do no more harm. So long as they were together.

Words were superfluous as they let themselves sink into the flow of the dance, a steady rhythm to their lives, surrounded by friends and family, their eyes saying all that was necessary.

They held onto each other to convince themselves that yes, this individual in front of them was real and had chosen to spend the rest of their lives with them.

With each breath, they took in the scent of the other, filling in the dark hole that was deep inside of themselves.

When he was with Natasha, Bruce knew she made sure he was a hero and not a monster. For all that she believed, he did it without her help and just failed to recognize how it was all him. And of course Natasha in turn believed that it was thanks to Bruce's example that she was able to walk away from being an empty assassin or spy without any real existence, and become an Avenger, while he could only see how she had managed that transformation herself.

There was an infinity of futures before them, but neither wanted this moment to end.

To just drink in the sight of each other, and the universe living within each other's eyes.

 **XXX**

Deep Space  
Milky Way Galaxy

Allied Forces Fleet

Bloody and limping, Thor stumbled into the medical bay of the _Frigga's Wrath_ , flagship of the allied fleet. From what he had seen upon returning aboard, the once mighty _Death Star_ -class Dwarven warship had taken massive damage in the recent battle.

Despite his own traumatic wounds, he carried into three wounded allies who he helped place within stasis tubes, before throwing himself onto a healing table. After today, as much as his heart ached to leave their treatment merely suspended, he knew that his presence would be required as soon as possible.

The forces of the Nine Worlds, or those who had leant aid, and the Nova Corps, had done battle with the armies of Thanos, a seemingly endless confrontation despite how it had only been a week. During this time though, Thor and everyone had been forced to fight without rest against the relentless hordes of the Mad Titan, death worshippers who actually embraced the strikes of his hammer.

Tens of thousands had perished upon either side to gain this foothold into Thanos' territory, a desperate bid to stop his slow yet rapacious advance across the universe. Once they might have stood idle, but with the revelation that the Mad Titan sought the Infinity Stones, and had come far too close too often—when even a single failure could doom them all, they had all known there was no alternative.

It was fight or die, and far too many good men and women had perished during this single skirmish.

Finally, after a grueling confrontation, Thor had killed the enemy leader, Black Dwarf, a member of the Black Order, even as the skies above appeared to burn as vast warships fired upon each other and burned in turn.

 _And it cost all of us to beat but one of his chief lieutenants_ , the Avenger knew. _Victory…may come at the cost of Asgard itself. But so be it. For otherwise he will make his way to Midgard and the Infinity Stone that lies there._ _Or he will kill them all just because he can._

 **XXX**

Westchester, New York

By the music player, Clint was minding Laura as he looked over rest of the song-list.

Amongst the dancers, Steve was showing Sif how Earthlings danced, albeit a little awkwardly. "I'm guessing you haven't done this much?" she asked, a little amused, considering introducing him to the Asgardian style.

"No, but I meant to," he told her with small smile, but she caught the hint of sadness.

"Who was she?"

He took a small breath before answering. "Her name was Peggy, Peggy Carter, and yes that was her niece we met when you took Lorelei into custody. Peggy and I promised each other a dance," the way his voice caught at that word telling her that the couple had been something more, "but then I got frozen in the ice for decades. She passed away a little while ago. And we never got to have that dance." He hoped she did not hear the true extent to which he regretted it. Regretted his cowardice in not his expressing his feelings sooner.

Sif cocked her head in befuddlement. "On Midgard, I know there are those who take offense to how much Asgardians love to party and battle, but that is because we know, even for us, that life can be too short. You should seize whatever joy you can, for you never know how long it will last."

He blinked at her in surprise, and then smiled. "You're right, but it can be hard to remember at times, especially with everything that's happening."

"Then remember it now," she admonished, "and think not of the past or future, but what pleasure can be found here in the present."

"Yes, ma'am," he agreed, and they let themselves sink even further into the rhythm.

Another couple was talking when they should have been swaying, as Wanda worked to teach Vision how to move his body. Truthfully, she wished for something a bit more modern, and a catchier beat to sway to. "Alright, Vision, I think you're almost ready to try it with another girl," she praised him, referring to how other partners would switch up between songs.

"Are you sure?" he asked, and she worked to ignore the little touch to his voice. She knew he had feelings for her, but she had made it clear that she was not in the mood to get into a serious relationship right now. She would still partner up with him several more times tonight, but it was also important that they spend some time with others. "Totally," she promised. "Besides, you've got to get out and meet more people! Knock 'em dead!" With that, she gave him a twirl and he ended up in the arms of a bright young SHIELD technician, who beamed up at him, and they quickly swirled away with the flow of the people, while Wanda found herself with an awkwardly grinning Rhodes.

 **XXX**

As the flow of the party shifted around, Tony and Steve found themselves standing together. "Great wedding," Ever brash, Tony offered to break the ice, holding up his champagne in a toast, which the other returned.

"The best," Steve agreed.

Trying to keep the flow going, the inventor gestured with his drink at the ever-growing dance space. "The SHIELD agents are really letting their hair down."  
"Fury left early so they wouldn't feel pressured, and Hill's staying in the background," Steve explained. Trying for some humour he added, "Guess it's because the bald man's not here anymore." Tony gave a small snort of amusement at that, but Steve decided not to push his luck any more. "I thought you were dancing with Pepper?"  
"Needed a break. I thought you were with Lady Thor."

Smiling at the joke, Steve took another sip. "Don't let Sif hear you say that," he gently admonished. "But she wanted to get some more to eat, and I thought I'd give her a chance to talk to some others. I'll catch up in a little bit."

"How's she adjusting?"  
"Faster than Thor did. I think he gave her some advice." Steve took a moment to think about it, but then decided to trust his friend a bit more. "I also get the feeling she's been to Earth before, but just isn't talking about it." Catching Tony's inquisitive look, he elaborated. "Things she recognizes or uses easily that Thor had trouble with. She also settled in pretty quick despite being in an alien environment."

"You asked her about it?"

"No, I figure she'll tell me if it's important."

"Always so trusting," Tony murmured, before shooting the other man a look to match the one he was receiving in turn. "That wasn't a criticism. But it _is_ weird, you're so willing to trust everyone here, but not the elected officials." 'Or me,' was unspoken, though it still echoed between them.

"I know we're not perfect," Steve reluctantly offered, "but the safest hands are still our own. And if one of us goes into politics, tries to be in charge of all this, then people might think we're going from being vigilantes to something worse."

Their tones were measured and polite, both obviously making in a herculean effort not to ruin the mood.

Looking at the dancing couples, Steve struggled to voice what was murmuring in his sub-conscious. "Do you and Pepper want children?"

The former Invincible Iron Man's spit-take hit a couple three meters off with a spray of champagne.

 _"_ _Hey!"_

"Sorry! Sorry! Not my fault! Blame Capsicle!" Tony yelped with a strangled voice while gesturing at his companion. "I know we're at a wedding and you're feeling sappy, but don't do that to my heart!" he angrily hissed at a chortling Captain America.

After a moment they had composed themselves, and Steve elaborated. "Nat and Bruce set this up, didn't they? To try and bring us together more. I just realized that."

"Among other things," Tony confirmed.

"Showing us what we'd lose if we fought over this."

"That almost implies we wouldn't stop with just words," Tony continued, his tone carefully light now. "Or at the very least we'd be using harsh language." He cocked an eyebrow in thought. "Has Super Mom been threatening people for swearing around the kid?"

Smiling again, Steve shook his head. "She hasn't had to. Everyone's too afraid to risk it." They chuckled at this, but then sobered up. As he stared at the dancing figures, Steve remembered a discussion he had with Peggy, back when he was asking her how she had managed to get so far despite being a "dame." Her words whispered back to him.

 **XXX**

[Flashback]

" _Compromise where you can. Where you can't, don't. Even if everyone is telling you that something wrong is something right. Even if the whole world is telling you to move, it is your duty to plant yourself like a tree, look them in the eye, and say, 'No,_ you _move'_."

 **XXX**

Present

As he looked at everything that he and the Avengers stood to lose, Steve came to a decision. _We haven't reached that crossroads yet. We're not at the point where there's something concrete that I can't ignore, a mission that has to be done but the politicians won't let us, or someone that being labeled as an enemy despite being a victim. No one's pressured us so much that we have to choose between fight or flight, because if we choose either one of those options, we may never be able to stop once we've begun._

 _But if I compromise here, before something else happens, and ask the others to do the same, maybe we'll be able to create a firm enough foundation to be ready for whatever comes next. To plant ourselves like a tree._

 _We'll place our faith in the system, and hope for the best. But we'll still be ready for the worst._

Before he could verbalize this aloud, Tony's hand flew up to his ear. Recognizing that the man was getting a report from FRIDAY, and seeing the concern in the man's eyes, Steve quickly put his drink down while signaling the Avengers. All of the trained agents also caught the message and the music died down, breaking even Bruce and Natasha out of their reverie.

 **XXX**

Earth

Unknown Location

Rumbling noises echoed through enclosed corridors, punctuated by random screeching of tortured machinery that left one painfully clenching their teeth.

"What's going on!?"

"Give me a moment," the other voice snapped as the lights flickered on and off. "…It's the cloak! It's failing!"

"I thought you said it would still work!"

"Well obviously not! This thing's too beaten up! It's a wonder it still flies! It's stuttering in and out, and it's going to fail soon! The Avengers and SHIELD will find us at this rate! What'll we do!?"

 **XXX**

Wedding

"Alright people, honeymoon's cancelled," Tony yelled out, pulling out his phone to put the AI on speakerphone. "FRIDAY's saying she's found something big." Addressing the phone directly, "So what is it by the way? I distinctly remember telling you I didn't want any disturbances short of an alien invasion."

"Well we might have one!" her voice boomed across the room.

"What!?" he snapped, as his Iron Man persona took over.

Steve pulled out his shield from under the table beside him, and Sif's sword was clenched in hand, ready for a fight right here and now.

"Satellites have detected some sort of craft sailing over the Atlantic Ocean. I can't lock onto it for a scan as its cloaking device is flickering on and off, but it's definitely present. Its trajectory, however, is that of a stable flight already within the atmosphere. I think it's been here for a while."

"High tech and mobile base," Tony mused aloud. "It's possible we've finally have our lead on the Appendix."

"No confirmation," Steve cautioned, giving the inventor a quick warning jerk with his chin to Mr. and Mrs. Romanoff-Banner. "But we've still got to check it out."

"It cannot be alien in origin," Sif argued, "Heimdall would have shot it down if it was only over the ocean."

 _Yes, and it's always reassuring to hear how Asgard can shoot down unwanted airborne craft, from space,_ Iron Man sarcastically thought. He was about to call in his suit of armour from the neighbouring room, when he saw Pepper hurrying over, worried about the commotion, and he remembered his promise to her. Guilty, he glanced aside, and saw Romanoff giving Barton a warning look, reminding him that he was also retired.

Any other day he might have still flown out with the Avengers, but Steve's question about their future nagged at his conscience enough to make him step back. He could not ignore it this time, not with Pepper right in front of him.

Besides, the present team of Avengers were a tough crew, and they deserved his trust.

"Good luck," he finally told them, making his intentions clear, taking a step back as Tony Stark returned to the forefront. "And Rogers?"

Captain America hesitating in storming off.

"If it is the Appendix, give them that good ol' right hook for me, okay?"

With a fierce smile, the hero nodded, "That's a promise."

 **XXX**

 **Author Notes:**

 **I know that in Captain America: Civil War it appeared that the Avenger's base only had Avengers in it, but I liked the implied idea from the end of the Age of Ultron that SHIELD agents were working there, or "former" SHIELD agents ;-) at the very least. Basically to take up support roles, and back-up and everything. Who cleans the place?**

 **I have no regrets about quoting Winston Churchill and then quoting Mass Effect. It actually amuses me.**

 **Yes, I used Kurt Wagner. But there are no X-men in this universe, so he is a man of God. Who better for the wedding? Besides X-men, the ceremony was also still heavily influenced by the wedding between Luke Skywalker and Mara Jade in the Star Wars Expanded Universe, but that in both events the robot/droid delivered the rings was an unintentional similarity.**

 **Bucky got to go to the bachelor's party but not the wedding, because there are more civilians present at the latter, and at the party there were a bunch of very skilled and dangerous people keeping an eye on him.**

 **-0-**

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 **-0-**

 **Next Chapter: "Dark Revelations"**

 **-0-**

 **Please Review, and I will get back to you!**


	29. Dark Revelations, Part 1

For better or worse, Marvel owns all of this stuff, not me.

-0-

Many thanks to my wonderful Beta, Jesuslovesmarina, who writes some pretty cool stories. Go read them!

-0-

Chapter 29: Dark Revelations, Part 1

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 _Previously: The (second) wedding of Bruce and Natasha went over beautifully, with Tony and Steve_ agreeing to resolve the issues between them over Registration peacefully. _Then Tony received a call from FRIDAY as it appeared that the Appendix's ship had suddenly become exposed. While Tony and the rest of the wedding guests stayed behind, the Avengers raced off to end this threat once and for all._

-0-

 **"** _I'm curious, son: when has "this could be a trap" ever stopped you?_ "

-Karl Tagon  
 **"** _Stopped? Never. Slowed me down while I load the guns?_ _Every time_ _."_

 _-Kaff Tagon_

 _"_ _Schlock Mercenary"_

-0-

Over the Atlantic Ocean

Quinjet

"So for ruining our wedding, I'm thinking extra pain," Black Widow noted as she adjusted up the shock level on the brand-new Widow Bites that Tony had given her. They were no longer solely melee weapons; they shot taser disks, too.

"Just remember that we want them talking sometime this week, Widow," Captain America mocked warned, well aware that she was overlooking many other crimes the Appendix had committed.

If it was actually Appendix in this upcoming Unidentified Flying Object.

Mr. Romanoff-Banner finished adjusting his pistol, checking that it was set for nonlethal rounds, and then triple-checked the large first aid kit he carried.

"We'll will be in sight of them in moments," Vision announced. "Satellite images cannot give us a clear visual yet."

"Be ready for evasive maneuvers," Captain America warned. "No guarantee that they can't see through our cloak. Falcon, prepare to join Vision and War Machine for aerial combat. Widow, you're pilot for the Quinjet."

"Roger."

"Roger."

"Roger."

"Rogers," Widow smirked.

"…Hilarious."

As Falcon got out of his seat, Captain America slid in as co-pilot, while Widow took the pilot's seat.

The Avengers let the banter go as they finished final preparations, while Lady Sif discussed an idea with the Scarlet Witch.

Finally, they could see it.

It was black and massive, shaped like an upright capital 'T' with a few extra small spikes rise above the top. From the side, they could see that where the spars met was a large, glowing red orb that screamed of being a power source, with parts of the rest of the ship having a similar highlighting. Heat ripples filled the air, flowing ahead of the speeding vessel.

They could also see the pillar of black smoke sprawling out of the lower half, implying serious internal damage to the vessel.

"By Odin!" Sif gasped.

"What? What!?"

"That ship! It's of the Dark Elves! One of their flagships!" Lady Sif declared, a dangerous fire alight in her eyes.

Taking another look, Bruce realized that it was only the angle that had kept him from recognizing the ship as a duplicate of the one that had landed in Greenwich, London, where Thor had driven off the invaders.

"That explains its presence," the Asgardian continued as she started putting the pieces of the puzzle together. "The Dark Elves' cloaking technology is one of the few things able to hide from Heimdall's sight!"

"Would it allow them to do all of the stuff we suspect the Appendix of doing without being caught, including dropping off Laura?" Black Widow asked.

"Easily."

"It appears," Sif grimly declared, "that once again we may have been premature in declaring the Elves extinct."

"Not for lack of trying," Falcon observed as his goggles enhance his vision. "That ship's taken a real beating, and I'm not just talking about that fire. It's been shot up and patched up before. That might be why they're suddenly not hiding anymore: the damage was finally too much for it."

"They jury rigged some repairs and they just failed? During our wedding?" Widow clarified incredulously.

"I feel I should mention that we don't know for sure if they've done anything wrong yet," Bruce pointed out.

"I've been hailing them, but they aren't responding," Black Widow pointed out.

"The Dark Elves are sworn enemies to all those who live in the light," Sif assured them in a steely tone.

"Alright then, if they haven't said anything in another two minutes—warn them of that, Widow—we are going to assume they're hostile," declared Captain America.

Remembering how his wife had asked him to bring Wanda more in the family fold, Bruce tried to make a joke to the Scarlet Witch. "It could be worse; Tony could have decided to pull some gag on us."

"Yes," she agreed. "Something like trailing you to find where you were going for your honeymoon, and filling the bedroom with packing peanuts!"

"If we should be so fortunate," Bruce grinned.

 **XXX**

Dark Elf Flagship

(Formerly "Unknown Location")

"Good news," one of the two figures sarcastically snapped, "it's the Avengers!"

"How long until they get here?"

"They're practically on our doorstep already; we lost long-range sensors in the power surge."

"Well, that's just terrific. Get us out of here!"

"And here I thought _I_ was supposed to be the genius."

 **XXX**

Quinjet

"What about weaponry? Defenses?" Black Widow tersely asked as they came up to the ship.

"Limited, if any; it's a carrier for smaller craft," Sif explained.

"Then we can take the time to be more precise," declared Captain America. "Fliers, deploy!"

Shifting his density, Vision fell out of his seat and through the stealth jet in one motion, while War Machine sent a quick electronic command for the back door to open as he stormed towards it with Falcon right behind him.

Within seconds the three of them were flying about the vessel with bullets, repulsors, and energy beams hammering at its engines and anything else that appeared vulnerable.

"Only Vision's doing any real damage," Bruce assessed as he looked at sensor readings. "That hull's too strong!"

"War Machine," their leader calmly ordered, "use your repulsors on the opening the smoke's coming from. Falcon, scout for further weaknesses. Vision, maintain fire."

"Permission to personally engage!" Sif growled, ready to rip that offensive ship apart with her bare hands if necessary. The Dark Elves had killed her Queen and many Asgardians, and if their brethren were responsible for the tragedies upon this planet…

Captain America swiveled around to look at her. "What?"

 **XXX**

Dark Elf Flagship

"How much longer can we last?"

"Don't worry, I'll have us back to full thrust in a few more minutes," the second tried to reassure.

"Not what I asked," snapped the first speaker.

 **XXX**

Quinjet

"If you're going to do anything, I'd do it soon," Bruce warned. "I can't get any readings from inside of the ship, but they can't be asleep at the wheel. They'll be trying to get the engines working properly, and that thing's presumably capable of going fast enough to break orbit."

"They might've already left in a smaller ship with its own cloaking device, and left this as a decoy," Widow added.

"No," Captain America said confidently. "Whoever's in there, they can't risk losing such a valuable ship and headquarters. They'll stick it out as long as possible. And if they've got a cloak, they'll figure they can leave at any time they're ready.

"Sif, Scarlet Witch, do it."

 **XXX**

Outside of the Dark Elf Flagship

"Tough sucker," War Machine grunted as he continued to pour in fire at the wounds in the ship. While the smoke and debris were starting to grow, there was still no visible change.

" _War Machine_ ," his radio crackled, " _prepare to catch Sif!_ "

Turning around midair, the pilot took in the sight of the Asgardian flying out of the back of the Quinjet upon a cloud of red light, accelerating towards the spaceship at speeds no human could survive upon impact.

Instead, Sif hardly faltered as she hit the black vessel, and leapt downwards to stab in her sword to the hilt into the ship, right beside the red orb that was presumably the power-source. Unchecked she continued to fall, with her blade cutting effortlessly through the hull as she went down with it.

"Wow!" War Machine yelped as he zipped down to grab her one once she was done gutting the spaceship with a _sword_ , preparing to pull her out in case it chose to blow.

 **XXX**

Quinjet

"How's that not frying her?" Scarlet Witch gasped.

"Probably fancy Asgardian tech to protect her from any electricity or whatever they use," Widow answered. "And didn't you think of that before you threw her? What'd you think she was planning to do?"

"Not that! Maybe throw it when she got—I don't know, _closer?_ Like Thor does?"

"Well, it worked," Bruce observed as he looked over his readings. "Engine thrust is down and it's just hanging there."

"Lady Sif," Captain America asked over the radio as War Machine picked the alien up, "how'd you know that'd work?"

" _Craft that advanced, and already able to function despite such damage,_ " she answered, " _would have redundant mechanisms. It would automatically compensate to maintain vital functions, such as keeping it afloat over the ocean when it already had multiple holes in the hull_."

"And if she guessed wrong, it still wouldn't have gotten away," Black Widow calmly added.

Shooting his friend a look, Captain America turned his attention back to the radio. "It could've still killed you."

" _Even if it fell from the sky or exploded, neither an event would've have been instantaneous. I'd have had time to leap away and for War Machine to catch me_."

Knowing that now was not the time, Captain America turned to stare at the hovering black vessel before them. "Alright, we'll talk about this more later. For now, cut us an opening into one of the hangers."

 **XXX**

Dark Elf Flagship/

Appendix HQ

"Well, that's it. They've caught us."

"Extract what you can. The ship's a maze and I'll keep them busy. We still have that last ship to escape in."

"Alright, but go make sure it's still operational after all of this, and make sure _they_ are secure."

Sounding insulted, the apparent 'brains' of the duo snarled, "Of course I will,"

 **XXX**

From the moment the Quinjet past over the fallen doors and into the hanger, they all knew something was wrong.

"What is it?" Steve asked as he took in how Bruce, Widow, and Falcon were gripping their heads, but none as much as Scarlet Witch.

"There's something about this ship—it's like a high pitch but not," Widow flatly managed, suppressing the pain.

" _I've got the same problem here_ ," War Machine's voice crackled over the radio. " _Like a drill in my head, but the suit should be blocking out any sonics like that._ "

"That's because it is more sophisticated than just a normal sonic weapon," Sif grimly answered, "it's a security feature. Anyone but a Dark Elf would have difficulty spending time here without suffering brain damage. It is only because we are all fellow members of the Nine Realms like them that we are suffering worse. Captain America and I have physiologies that can resist it, but it appears you normal humans are more sensitive."

"Yes," agreed Vision, "it appears to be a signal permeating the ship… Wanda, will you be okay?"

After an endless interval of trying to crush her skull in with her bare hands, the young woman finally relaxed. "I've got it. I had to sort of…mute my powers so that I can't feel it as much. But my senses aren't as enhanced anymore while we're here."

Widow was the next to recover as she finally got her mental techniques in place against this new and unfamiliar threat, with Bruce and his meditative exercises following suit. It took Falcon and War Machine another few minutes, but then they, too, were ready. Or at least able to tolerate the pain for a short period.

Even more warier now, they stepped out and took a quick reconnaissance.

"Alright, that's not Dark Elf, I bet," War Machine chimed in as they looked around the hanger.

"No, it is not," Sif confirmed as they took in the LED lights on the ceiling. "Whoever is here lacks their night vision. It is even possible that there are no Elves here at all; their sensitive eyes would dislike these additions. It is also unusual that they would use human lighting at all, as opposed to making their own. That must mean they can pose as Midgardians, whoever they are."

"Or they are human, somehow," Scarlet Witch added.

"I think I saw that model for sale when I was thinking of renovating my kitchen," Falcon remarked, gesturing at the lights.

"No signs of life," War Machine chimed in again, craning his head around as his suit's sensors try to scan the place, with Black Widow and Dr. Banner trying to do the same with the tech on their arms.

"Doubtless the hull itself is designed to resist any forms of detection, as to help maintain stealth," Sif advised, clearly on guard.

"I can sense that people are still here," Scarlet Witch chimed in, her brow furrowed with frustration. "But with this interference, I'm not sure where. Think there's two or three of them."

"Alright, fan out but keep in sight of each other," Captain America ordered. "They probably know we're here, but like us they probably don't know where exactly we are now that we've left the hangar.

 **XXX**

Shortly after

They found proof that the inhabitants were not Dark Elves with their next discovery: human manufactured computers connected to the ship's systems. Advanced ones, but still human.

"English language options, and the system looks geared to bipeds like us," Bruce noted.

"There are many who share our build," Sif lectured, "but the use of English as opposed to changing the operating systems to their own native tongue is surprising."

"Definitely starting to look like they're human," Black Widow concluded, earning a concerned nod from the Asgardian.

"And they've somehow gotten their hands on a ship on par with whatever Asgard can build. And they've somehow made this tech compatible with what the Dark Elves have," Banner continued as he looked at the various attachments. "Pretty sophisticated. Vision?"

The Synthoid stepped forward and phased his hand right into the computer system, cocking his head in interest. "Curious."

"What is it, Vis?" Wanda spoke up.

"Their encryption is the most advanced I've ever encountered."

"Can you get through?" Captain America asked, hiding his concern.

"I just did." But the advanced artificial intelligence was not smiling. "It still took far longer than I would have imagined. Accessing the system, that is. Searching for relevant information, and copying the rest over." Vision seemed to stare off into space for a moment before focusing on the Avengers. "There is a tremendous wealth of intel here, enough to confirm this is the so-called Appendix that we've been searching for. However, there is nothing about their precise identities. And even here they refer to certain details with code words I cannot decipher. I will attempt to find something more useful by going through it again more carefully."

Captain America nods and takes a deep breath. "Alright, War Machine, back outside, make sure they don't try to escape or call for help." With a nod, the suit of armour promptly walked off. "Falcon, guard the hanger, that way you can get out to help War Machine if needed. But send Redwing to scout the ship with us."

"I hunt better alone, even with Thor or the Warriors Three," Sif warned, but in a way that indicated she would not argue if her leader told her otherwise.

He paused before answering her, dealing with the others first. "Scarlet Witch, stay with Vision. Widow and Banner, watch each other's backs." He turned to look at Sif. "You and I will go together. We've got to move fast in case they pull out another hulkling on us, but we've also got to be able to watch each other's backs. If we come to a part where it seems best to split up, we'll do it then, but keep up radio contact." He looks at the others. "Same for the rest of you; trust your judgment while we're going through. Just remember, we work best as a team."

Without another word, they quietly continued to infiltrate.

 **XXX**

The Hanger

 _Alright, I think this is as secure as I can make it_ , a concealed Falcon grimly concluded.

The quinjet's weaponry was unlocked and facing the main doorway, with the sensors feeding right into his high-tech goggles, ready to fire on his verbal command. Miniature cameras had been deployed to monitor the hallways leading here, and he kept shifting his attention from what he was "seeing" with his eyewear to what he could observe with his own natural senses.

He was also hiding in the shadows and behind a convenient piece of metal from where he could shoot at any strangers.

Meanwhile, Falcon also kept a third eye, so to speak, on Redwing's progress as the drone advanced forward, sending him its telemetry. It was dangerous to divide his focus so much, but it was worth the risk if it meant gaining even the slightest intelligence on what exactly his team was going up against; they were going in blind, and as a soldier he knew that was unacceptable.

It was his duty to correct the situation without risking any of their actual personnel—and sadly, despite his constant insistence that Natasha should be a nicer to his pet drone, at the end of the day Redwing didn't count as 'personnel.'

If it started acting like Vision and trying –emphasis on _trying_ — to learn how to cook, Falcon would revise his opinion.

It was not the ongoing screw being hammered into his brain that was keeping him so high-strung and wary, but how every instinct he had honed as a soldier was screaming at him to keep on high alert.

There was some _dangerous_ and _wrong_ about this place.

 **XXX**

One of the shadowy figures cursed as his fingers flew over his keyboard like a pianist. The Synthoid was in their system, locking him out. If they were unable to access their files, take them with them as they escaped…

Earth was doomed.

And everything would be for nothing.

 _Unacceptable!_

 **XXX**

The husband and wife duo moved forward with a shared sense of skill and teamwork to detail that would have unnerved any rival intelligence agency, including the old SHIELD.

Bruce Romanoff-Banner's movements were still a little unpolished, but it was clear that he had been well trained as he walked forward with his gun raised –nonlethal ordinance still— to scope out every square inch of the rooms and corridors they passed through.

Natasha Romanoff-Banner was displaying an insight into the technology they were coming across, and skill with the sophisticated pieces of computer equipment she wore, that would make people realize just what a keen mind was hidden behind a woman raised since childhood to fight and kill and seduce. There was no part of spy craft, or warfare, that she could not adapt to and weaponize to achieve her objective. Becoming involved with one of the world's greatest scientists—perhaps the first or second best—and showing an appreciation and interest in his work had only sharpened her tools.

"Any idea yet what they're really doing here?" the Black Widow asked.

"No clue. It could be anything. I'm seeing stuff her for cybernetics, but it looks disused so I don't think we're dealing with cyborgs. Unused stasis chambers and some weapons development, but nothing specific."

She considered her husband's words and tried to figure out where they fit into the growing puzzle they were forming. With a clearer picture, pieces were fitting in nicely, but there were still large gaps that were keeping them from seeing the whole thing.

"Witch said there's only two or three, and I'm not seeing any signs that there's been many more than that. At least not in the last while."

It was in the small hints that were adding up to paint this picture. Clues like the odd piece of food wrapping left around because no one was cleaning them up, how they had only found a single bathroom so far in the massive ship which implied a limited need, or the complete and utter lack of personal affects despite living on a dark and literally alien vessel. Despite all of this space, there were not enough people here to turn it into a home as they would instinctively feel driven to if there were more of them. This was treated more as a work station, but with too few of them to feel a need to keep it cleaned or organized.

Whoever lived here probably had their own personal quarters, but given how much of the ship had already been covered, and Bruce's approximation as to how much space vital systems would have taken up, there was not a whole lot left of the ship to cover at this rate. It was unlikely that many more had taken up residence here.

"Which means that either they're that confident, or they don't trust anyone else," Bruce theorized.  
"Possibly. Also, I'm not seeing any signs that I'd associate with any women living here, so I'm guessing it's just men." (In the washroom, they had found an absence of cosmetics, the toilet seat lid up, and the surrounding area a mess.)

"Probably why they're acting so insane, without anyone to keep them grounded," Bruce said as he shot her a small smile.

Black Widow did not return the gesture, but with affection, informed him he was a "Dork."

Confident that there was nothing of interest in the room, the moved on into the next.

 **XXX**

The supersoldier and alien moved through the ship with a terrible grace and speed.

Senses peeled for the slightest hint, they prowled forward, taking note of more strange machinery, but neither could figure out the purpose behind any of it. It was beyond Captain America's expertise, and it had all been so melded with human tech that Sif confessed she would require more time than was feasible to decipher it.

Truthfully, the two of them could have advanced much further already if not for how they wanted to keep relatively close to the others so that they could support them if necessary.

" _All clear still_ ," Black Widow reported. " _But Bruce's drooling over some of the stuff we're finding. We could probably patent half of this to pay for bringing down another comet or five after we're done here._ "

"Copy that," Captain America responded, glad to hear the reassuring sound of her banter. It told him that despite who they were going up against, she was calm and in control.

Then they both heard it.

Footsteps.

Light tread, trying to be stealthy, but against his enhanced senses and Sif's centuries of hunting wily creatures that would and could ambush and kill Asgardians, their prey might as well have been shouting his intentions to them.

Quickly Captain America gave silent hand-signals to Sif, with her nodding in agreement, having already memorized them.

She doubled back with the intent to come around from behind the approaching man or woman, cutting through a wall if necessary, while Captain America would go from the front, trusting in his shield and skills to keep him safe. The corridor was actually perfect for his physics-defying shield toss.

The leader of the Avengers waited a few more seconds to let Sif get into position before moving forward to finally meet the Appendix face-to-face, when something whizzed through the air towards him, bouncing off the walls like his own shield was supposed to have done.

Quickly Captain America braced his shield to block whatever was to come, but then cried out as he grasped his head instead as a wall of high-pitched sound assailed his enhanced senses.

Even his formidable will struggled against the pain, and even the briefest moment of vulnerability was all that was necessary.

As fast as he could, a man came around the corner from where he had been luring the Avenger, and fired a strange gun, shooting right at Captain America's feet. A flash of light and the concussive slammed the hero senseless against a wall.

Cautiously, the man in the black outfit eyed the living legend sprawled again the wall, before ducking around a corner. He might know Lady Sif well enough to fully predict how she might act, but he had studied Captain America with an obsessive eye for detail, and knew what orders had been given.

Sure enough, Sif soon appeared, itching to move faster after Captain America had failed to send the standard to two clicks over his radio to say he was ready, but knowing that recklessness would be suicidal here.

She paused at the sight of her downed friend and comrade, and then whirled as someone else brazenly stepped out of the shadows.

"You!" she gasped in recognition, her shock at seeing another friend and ally costing her a crucial second.

Her confidence in her ability to handle whatever he wielded was also costly.

It was true that even a modern Midgardian rocket launcher would have only dealt her pain, not any actual damage.

The yellow blast that thundered into her was another matter, the sheer force smashing her halfway into the alien metal walls.

Less than a minute and already two Avengers down.

Satisfied, the balding figure of Phil Coulson hefted the Destroyer Gun in his arms, and went off to deal the rest of the intruders.

 **XXX**

 **Author Notes:  
:-X**

 **-0-**

 **Recommended fics:**

 **"** **Captain No More** **"** **by Jesuslovesmarina**

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 **Please Review, and I will get back to you!**


	30. Dark Revelations, Part 2

For better or worse, Marvel owns all of this stuff, not me.

-0-

Many thanks to my wonderful Beta, Jesuslovesmarina, along with help from theicemenace and KaydenceRei. Make sure to check out their own stories!

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Chapter 30: Dark Revelations, Part 2

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 _Previously: During the wedding for Bruce and Natasha, FRIDAY discovered the location of a Dark Elf Flagship like the one shown in "Thor: The Dark World." She also discovered that the flagship was possibly the Appendix HQ. Damage to the ship had forced it to drop its cloaking device, allowing the Avengers to attack and board the vessel. Shortly afterwards they were able to confirm it as being an Appendix ship._

 _Onboard, however, the Avengers made a horrific discovery regarding one of the Appendix members' identities as he effortlessly defeated Sif and Steve._

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" _Not long ago, Xavier, I_ tried _your path. Do you have the courage to do what_ I _have done? Are you willing to walk down_ my _path, for a time? Perhaps before you die you will realize what I have always known. That the weak have virtually no chance of inheriting the Earth_."

–Magneto

" _Weakness, Erik—has always been a matter of_ perspective _. Can't you_ see _?_ _After all these years—do you_ still _not understand? Your_ dream, _Magneto, cannot endure. Because it will forever be_ tainted _by the blood of those you've sacrificed along the way—under the pretense that it was somehow_ necessary _!_ "

–Charles Xavier

('X-men: Divided He Stands,' by Mike Carey)

-0-

Mysterious Dark Elf Flagship/

Appendix HQ

(Formerly "Unknown Location")

" _I've got visual on Cap!_ " Falcon announced as Redwing finally arrived at the scene, hovering above the pair. " _He and Sif are down. Whoever it was did it fast and hard; Sif's halfway through a wall, but they're tough and still breathing. There doesn't appear to be serious damage."_

" _Copy_ ," Black Widow answered, taking command. " _Send Redwing to find the attacker. Don't worry, if they were going to finish them off,_ _they'd have done it already. If you don't see any obvious injuries, then they'll be up and ready to fight before you know it_."

" _Roger_."

" _Widow_ ," the calm voice of Vision broke in, " _I haven't had any further luck with the files, but I've discovered someone else in the system, trying to access them. I've located their position, and I'm closing in_."

" _Understood, but be careful_."

Using a computer on her wrist, Scarlet Witch worked to follow her friend who was phasing straight through the walls, wondering at the strangeness of the mind she was dimly feeling up ahead.

 **XXX**

Westchester, New York

The SHIELD quinjets came to rest on the lawn in front of the church without so much a whisper.

All hints that a wedding had taken place here had been dismantled, and the remaining agents were all geared up to fight a small war, ready to support the heroes any way they could.

Captain America had sent word that they had disabled a cloaked carrier of alien origin –thanks to certain insane Asgardian with a sword— so that it was now floating helplessly midair. The Avengers had then boarded the craft, with regular updates being sent back on encrypted channels.

"Why didn't they fly off when the Avengers did?" Darcy Lewis sotto-whispered to Jane.

"It's because we think our enemies have compromised SHIELD," Fury calmly answered from behind, making both ladies jump. "But now that they've engaged their flying carrier, we're free to move in, with fighter jets on their way too."

"Here, take care of her," Clint brusquely ordered as he passed off baby Laura to Tony while heading off to one of the aircrafts, while the rest were already taking off, loaded to the brim with soldiers. The archer prepared for liftoff while Maria Hill came to join him in the cockpit, taking up the co-pilot seat. "You're stalling," she chastised.

"They can handle it, especially with everything SHIELD's sending. Our priority is making sure the baby is safe. And as crazy as it sounds, keeping her surrounded by guns and mobile is the way to go. 'Sides, it's not like we're going to be fighting, that's for the kids with healthy reflexes."

She snorted at that, but did not disagree. Fury would be joining them to help provide overall command and coordination if necessary, so keeping this particular quinjet away from any shooting that might break up was their top priority. Yes, taking baby Laura within a hundred kilometers of any shooting sounded dangerous, but for something like this they had to take a few calculated risks.

Standing outside just beside the ramp while holding onto the squirming kid, Tony nervously toed the suitcase holding his combat armour sitting on the grass, obviously conflicted.

"Have FRIDAY send one for me, too," Pepper declared. The multi-billionaire whirled around to face his girlfriend, having somehow changed from her dress into a more practical blouse and blue jeans. "We'll go help provide back-up," she continued, "and make sure Laura's even safer at the same time."

He stared at her for a moment, before finally saying the first thing on his mind. "I want to kiss you so bad right now, but for the weirdest reason, it seems wrong to do it while holding a baby. What? What!?" he cried as she broke out laughing.

 **XXX**

Dark Elf Flagship/

Appendix HQ

(Formerly "Unknown Location")

A hunched figure stooped over a strange keyboard, a device that functioned as a hybrid between alien and human components, when he realized there was a new image reflecting off the computer screen from behind him. The white-haired man swirled around to find a multi-coloured figure hovering in the air behind him. _Of course, he phased right through the ship's decks and walls._

Vision cocked his head, eyes visibly widening in surprise. "Well, that explains many things, and of course raises even more questions."

The elderly man spat on the floor. "Save it. I know you know!"  
Yet Vision was still confused. "Know what?"

"Don't pretend, don't hide behind that mask of confusion at human behaviour! You know! The Stone in your head—but you didn't say anything! Haven't warned them! You should know why we're here and what we're doing!"

Lightly touching the ground as he landed, Vision was silent for five whole seconds as his supercomputer of a mind struggled to make sense of everything. Yet however improbable it was, he was forced to accept the truth.

"I see," Vision finally managed, sounding…disappointed. "So that's what happened, how you caused all of this."

Then his brows narrowed as he looked into the wells of pain and loss and hate that were this man's eyes. A rage to rival, or even surpass, that of Bruce Banner's.

"You stared into the abyss," the Avenger intoned, "and when you were needed most, you blinked, and let it in. Leading to this, and all the horrors you have perpetuated, a shadow of who you could have been. Betraying everything you ever stood for, and destroying countless lives in the process."

.

.

.

"HA! Aha—ha, ha ha!" Slowly, but with increasing fervor the man gave off a sound that was but a mockery of laughter, twisted by bitterness and loss. When it started to actually started to hurt he regained control, gasping for breath, but his cynical eyes continued to accusingly stab at the Synthoid. "After what I've seen? After what Thanos did!?" He snarled, actually baring his teeth in fury, "I realized what had to be done. In the name of peace and sanity."

"No doubt," said a placating Vision. "But it's over. Please stop reaching for that gun; I don't want to hurt you."

The man's right hand halted its covert movement towards a rifle on the table beside him, but this was just to draw attention as his left snapped up with a sleek handgun reminiscent of a Star Trek phaser.

Vision threw himself to the side even as he shifted his density. As powerful as he was, he knew he could not take any risks with this madman. A full 18.6% of his simulations had already been dedicated to anticipating how dangerous this foe was.

Too slow.

A sickly-green beam glanced at the tip of Vision's cloak, still a physical part of his very body, and energy raced up his form, oblivious of how it was supposed to just phase right through him.

 **XXX**

" _Is that Vision!?_ " War Machine gasped.

" _He's screaming, why's he screaming!?_ " Bruce asked as they listened to the sounds over the open radio channel.

 **XXX**

"Nothing personal, but that Stone is wasted on you," the figure apologized as he walked over to the twitching, fallen hero, lining up his gun for a headshot. "Best be sure."

Red light threw him aside as Scarlet Witch stormed in, her aura pulsating around her, "Vis!? Are you alright!?"  
"Wanda," Vision gasped, "run!"

A hacking cough got their attention as the attacker slowly stood up, cloaked by the shadows of the ill-lit ship. "Alpha Omega-B4," he got out, and Wanda dropped to her knees as claws of high-pitched sound gouged into her mind. Instinctively she reached out with her powers and crushed the activated security speakers. Panting as the sound stopped, she looked up to see the man step forward, "…No."

He walked with a slight hunch, and his hair was paper white. Stress lines scarred his face and a trickle of blood coming out of his mouth from being thrown across the room. But his eyes were firm and hard despite the agony he must be feeling.

Full of purpose, and devoid of any compassion for those around him. A man who would instinctively reduce people to statistics when deciding who should live or die as he determined their future –the cage they would exist within— for them.

But it was still clearly Doctor Robert Bruce Banner.

 **XXX**

SHIELD Quinjet

"PEPPER! HELP!" a panicky Tony Stark yelled as Laura started to thrash and cry.

His girlfriend and various helpful SHIELD agents tried to calm the baby, trying to figure out what was upsetting her.

 **XXX**

Dark Elf Flagship/

Appendix HQ

(Formerly "Unknown Location")

Wanda struggled to stand, her balance destroyed from the sonic attack, trying to get away from Vision. Either her friend would recover and help her split this man's attention, or it would prevent Vis from being targeted alongside her.

The more she stared at this impossible man, the more she could think of him as a complete stranger, as opposed to her…friend.

She wondered when, exactly, she had started thinking of Bruce as a friend. _Huh, things really have changed since Ultron._

She understood that for all they shared the same face, this man's soul was as different from Bruce's as night and day.

The Avengers had met Dr. Bruce Banner –or rather, Dr. Bruce Romanoff-Banner now— as a shy, surprisingly vulnerable man who did everything he could to avoid any confrontations. Even when they had later come to grasp the sheer depth of emotions lurking within him, including a rage that would not –nay, could not— rest, he had still always seemed to be trying to disappear from sight or mind, all too readily embracing guilt or self-depreciation.

It was Natasha, alternating between gentle prodding and encouragement, and forceful action (including threatening to shoot him if he ran out on Laura), who had brought the original Bruce back out into the light of day. The man who had pioneered scientific advancements that even Tony Stark needed an AI to match, and the rebel who had turned those very developments upon himself.

Bruce's life after the accident; the sabotage, the _Hulk_ ; had buried that pride underneath shame, guilt, and fear. Fear for himself, but more importantly for everyone else. His time abroad and all his sufferings had done nothing to diminish his inner decency. If anything, he had grown more compassionate and wise, seeking to help people however he could. His wife had brought back the steel in his spine, but now there was an inner strength and moral courage to balance it, making him a true hero.

This Banner...

 _All that genius, and none of that love_ , Wanda instinctively knew.

A mad scientist who had already been turning the world upside down, now incapable of human sympathy, having devoured whatever speck of a conscious he had ever possessed. A man whose intellect not only gave him the ability to do whatever he wanted, but deluded himself into believing it was his responsibility.

 **XXX**

The ship shuddered suddenly, tilting to the right as the damage within it continued to cascade, sending everyone stumbling around.

" _Everyone, this is Wanda. It's Banner. Some evil clone of Banner, but older! Vision's down and I can't walk straight, but he just took off when the ship jumped around like that and I lost focus. Repeat, it's an evil Bruce clone!_ "

Limping, Captain America stopped to check Sif's pulse before hurrying forward, ignoring the ringing in his ears while his body struggle to function despite internal injuries from that concussive force. His face was as grim and bloody as the stakes became increasingly clear, and it was with an icy calm that he started relaying orders. "This is Captain America. Sif took a direct hit and is still down, but I'm good to go and her pulse is stable. I didn't get a look at my attacker's face. War Machine, relay the intel about Bruce to Tony and the others. I don't know what's going on here, but we've got mysteries piling up that they need to know about. Shoot down anyone who comes out."

"Copy that. Relay freaky intel and shoot down anyone who tries to leave."

 **XXX**

Natasha and Bruce stumbled but kept moving as they digested what they had just heard.

An enemy who was also an expert on gamma radiation and advanced biochemistry.

A genius scientist in a multitude of other fields, and experienced with alien technology.

Knew the Avengers on a close, personal level.

Had access to SHIELD resources.

"You got an evil older brother or something?" Natasha asked.

"In our line of work," Bruce got out, "anything's possible." He turned his attention back to his radio. "Everyone, designate the other me as Robert Banner," referring to his own first name, 'Bruce' being his middle name, "so you don't mix us up."

 **XXX**

The room had once been the main maintenance bay for the Dark Elf ship, near a secondary hanger, but now it was full of strange devices that seemed neither human nor Elvish, but in fact even more alien.

 _And with lots of cover for me to work with._

Sliding across the floor as she entered, the Black Widow soundlessly threw a little device off to the side, and from it a pre-recorded message came out. "I must admit, I never imagined it would be you," her voice rang out. "Who better to try and set the Avengers against each other, than another Avenger? After all, we've always been our own worst enemy."

The old man flinched, and stopped what he was doing. Slowly turning around, he walked toward the voice, warily fiddling with another gun. "Ah, Natasha. No, Romanoff, we're not that close this time. Well, he is, not me."

Eyes narrowing as she stalked through the shadows, Black Widow spoke into her wrist computer which broadcasted her whispered words to be played loud and clear from where she had planted the earlier device. "I see. So our Laura is born from both you and a duplicate of me? What are we talking about here? Clones?"

"I know you're not actually where your voice is coming from," 'Robert' dryly rebuked without answering, now ducking back to dart and weave around all the large equipment. "You're far too smart for that."

"Not smart enough to figure out why you've been so sneakily pushing for Registration," Natasha flattered. She then moved to subtle insults to provoke a response out of him. "But you should know that a lot of us will oppose it. It'll just end in a mess."

"But we _want_ you to fight! To pit the heroes and Enhanced and people like you against each other!"

 **XXX**

The Avengers froze at this news over Natasha's communicator, and the ice in their veins only thickened with each passing word.

 **XXX**

Former machine shop

"A war of the fittest, where victory can only come from being ruthless enough, _practical_ enough, willing to cut down even those who were once your teammates. That is the only way humanity can survive!" His voice rang with conviction, and the need for her to _understand_.

Then he seemed to regain his composure. "Of course, that's what you were trying to goad out of me, but as you can see I'm quite willing to explain myself. But I am curious," and here Widow could hear the scientist rising in his voice, "how did you figure it out? You clearly know more than we expected, and we took every precaution possible."

 _He's insane_. Yet she decided to gamble to draw out more information. Even a person's delusions granted valuable insight about their character. "Stark figured out about the sabotage you did to Bruce's gamma experiment after studying Laura. Went back through everything and put it together."

"Stark!?" the doppelganger snapped with surprise and…frustration? "But he's—!" He stopped. "Of course, he's more than just a weapon's designer, isn't he. Should've seen that coming," he faintly mumbled out at the end, Widow only catching it from the echo in the room. "And he'd worked with the other me, so he'd have recognized our work."

"But why him!? Why Bruce!? Why do that to yourself!?" Widow shouted, deliberately letting emotion colour her voice to make him feel more in control of the conversation.

"Partially for the sake of convenience, but honestly it just seemed like a good idea," was the reply that mixed a minor apology with honest annoyance. "By that point I knew my DNA, and Phil Coulson's," Widow's expressionless face never flickered, "as well as could be. But we thought that my younger self would be more suited for this. We assumed his naivety would make him the perfect prototype. You know, that he would use the great power thrust upon him for _good_ , or whatever he thought that meant. At the very least we figured he wouldn't abuse it. Sort of like Captain Rogers if that makes you feel better. But I'll admit that in hindsight, I had a few more issues back then that I was willing to admit to. And I did rush the product before using it. Phil was rather upset about that."

"Product!?" Widow screeched, continuing to project vulnerable pain and rage to fish for intel. She knew it was difficult, given how this man implied he knew her personally, and given that the scope of his schemes suggested he had definitely been studying up on her and the other Avengers. Still, he was clearly a man who believed he knew what was best for everyone, seeing them as overly-emotional children. He might not be the type to _enjoy_ seeing her vulnerable, but he would likely assume it was genuine. "Is that what you call it?" Unseen by their adversary as she continued to talk, she was typing out instructions on her wrist computer. "Do you have any idea what you've done? Any idea of how many people you've hurt for your selfish experiments? What is this to you, a game!?"  
"You'll understand eventually, why it was necessary," Robert continued. " _His_ arrival is inevitable. And who better than myself to bear the price? To pay the sacrifice?"

"And where does Laura fit into this?" Widow snarled, her voice bounding out of the planted communicator to echo around the room. "Where does she fit into your master plan?"

"Laura?" he echoed with what seemed like genuine confusion. "She's not part of the plan at all. Any plan, really."

 _But that means that Laura_ wasn't _supposed to distract us! She was never meant to lead us, lead Tony, to learning the truth! I don't understand what's going on, but he didn't expect Tony to be able to set us on their trail!_ Natasha realized, before returning to her dispassionate analysis. _He hasn't denied about her being his daughter, but he sent his own child to the Bartons…_ Then she took in the state of the ship. "I'm guessing keeping care of a baby was more than you were willing to commit to," Black Widow called out, switching gears to project a hint of mockery.

"We had her in stasis," agreed Robert shamelessly. "But it was draining the power too much, so I sent her to people Natasha had trusted." Something cold flashed through Black Widow's eyes at the mention of that name.

"She'd meant for Fury to be the godfather, hence her middle name, but that was only because the Bartons were already dead. It's what she'd have wanted. And with that out of the way, we were able to continue our work. I figured if they weren't willing to take care of her, they'd send her to you. It was only fitting. I even changed her surname to be sure you'd know she was your daughter, or close enough."

"You never cared about her at all," Widow flatly concluded. "Somehow, you had a child by me, or someone with my DNA, but neither of you were willing to raise her, so you just shoved her away until later."

"My wife was always the one who knew how to handle her," he growled back, still trying to stealthily make his way to exit while simultaneously enlightening her. "And I was too busy ensuring her future."

 _And that's why there was nothing written on that note that came with Laura, except her name_ , Natasha realized as the pieces of puzzle started to fit together, such as the lack of personal information that Clint had noted. More detail would have been included in the note if it were a responsible guardian who had left her on his doorstep.

The fake was almost at the exit out, when someone stepped out of the shadows in front of him.

"'Her future,' while you set off wars and conflict," Bruce Romanoff-Banner quoted while very, very still, white with barely controlled rage. "That I'd 'pay the sacrifice' in your place, without being asked."

The older reflection froze in disbelief, but then comprehension dawned and he scowled. "She wasn't just trying to get information out of me; she was also trying to get my location and feed you directions so that you could cut me off," he realized, facing his doppelganger with a grim expression. "She's right behind me now even." Robert did not even bother to look back to confirm it.

The bland answer, the indifference, the lack of a denial; it was all the last straw.

 _Kill him._

Trusting the Other Guy to also keep Natasha safe, Bruce took off every leash, and the Hulk tore its way into existence.

 **XXX**

The Hulk was frankly a little confused.

His senses told him that the man before him was Banner, which was wrong on multiple levels. Then there was how he had emerged within a dark and confined room was also unsettling.

Smashing everything, except Banner's Mate, seemed the most reasonable response, but what truly threw him off was how _Banner_ , the one inside of him, was actively _encouraging_ him! Urging him on to _kill_ Other-Banner.

And then the Hulk understood why.

This was the man. The one who had caused all the pain. Who had hurt and made all those mockeries of the Hulk in that city.

…Smash until there was no more face like Banner, and no more scent like Banner, and no more _anything_ like Banner.

This all took place within the span of time necessary for the Hulk to gain his balance after his transformation.

A vicious growl shuddered through his chest and throat, and he **_ROARED!_**

 **XXX**

"Widow and Bruce are going to engage," Steve called out into his radio. "Support them if you can, but we've got to find the other one. Sounds like we've got an evil Coulson too."

" _W-We need them for questioning_ ," Vision got out. " _There's s-something we're st-still m-missing here_."

"That's what Widow's for," Steve assured with confidence he did not entirely feel.

And then Steve heard the inhuman roar: bottomless rage that echoed throughout the ship, and right down into him.

 _RUN OR YOU WILL DIE!_ his instincts screamed in horror, realizing—no, _knowing_ —that something was loose in this airborne, close-quartered deathtrap that would kill him just for being between It and Its prey.

 **XXX**

Natasha staggered as the sheer force of the Other Guy's voice hit her, less a sound and more like a punch of air.

Robert Banner was nearly knocked to the ground by it, but then he frantically pulled out another strange pistol from underneath the back of his shirt, and fired before Natasha could regain her balance.

It was a poor shot really, nothing more than a slim dart that just barely hit the edge of the Hulk's arm despite the bulky form right in front of him.

It still made the Hulk flinch and stumble back however, while the old man hastily dropped his weapon as Black Widow targeted him.

Covering the older man with her own gun, the sound of the Hulk grunting in pain sized both of their attentions. The monster was griping the puncture with his free hand, but a greyness was visibly spreading out through his veins from underneath his palm, the colour looking dead and diseased with his naturally green skin.

Before Widow could threaten him for an explanation, her prisoner started talking again.

"Oh, Hulk. Everyone is so impressed by your so-called invincibility, and your incredible strength, which seems to grow the madder you get. Yet no one seems to focus on the true biological marvel about you: you grow.

"Somehow, your body gains the mass to grow to enormous proportions, and heal every wound. Even if you take a bullet to the brain, like when you tried to kill yourself that one time," his voice shifted to that of a disapproving father, "—I was disappointed in you Bruce, by the way." He coughed and resumed speaking like a university professor. "Anyways, you don't suffer any mental damage at all. Everything in your cranium is restored without any memory loss except for the standard blackouts from shifting. Even then you retain hazy memories of what the Hulk commits. You get right back up as normal even if you shredded your own brain or got your heart gets shot up. But how? Where does the biological tissue to rebuild you back from scratch or 'Hulk-out' come from?"

Despite her urge to shoot the man, Black Widow kept her composure. Mindless violence would solve nothing, and her target was providing potentially invaluable intelligence.

"The answer lies in how you have the fantastic and seemingly impossible ability to convert gamma radiation into matter itself, instinctively creating the necessary cells and organs for your transformation." Robert's growing excitement was evident now, evidently overjoyed to have a new audience. Even if both of them clearly felt like killing him.

"You don't even need food really, since the radiation provides the necessary energy and actually creates all the nutrients you need. This restoration even holds true to your very memories and mental functions, restoring anything that gets damaged. Yet at the same time, how much radiation you produce is determined by several factors, including your emotions.

"Your mind unconsciously keeps the gamma radiation in check, yet this takes a lot of work. Getting angry, dealing with threats, or even total loss of brain functions, such as a bullet to the head, interferes with this, releasing the radiation in increasing amounts. The angrier you get, the more radiation is released unchecked, the more cells are created, and the stronger you become. And not just that, the angrier people make you, the more they hurt you, the faster your body both regenerates and becomes even tougher too."

Robert stopped to take a deep breath before giving his finishing statements.

"And of course, it also works in reverse, converting your excess bulk back into harmless energy when you 'de-Hulk.' Your body is a miracle of matter-energy conversion. So long as your radioactive core remains untouched, you can constantly heal yourself.

"Incidentally, that is where this weapon comes in. It injects you with nano-bots, which spread out from the injection site, replicating themselves at an incredible rate using your own cells as raw building materials. They possess miniature devices that I will not describe to interfere with your radiation so that you can't regenerate."

As the sick growth continued to spread beneath the skin, Black Widow saw something even more horrific: fear in the Hulk's eyes.

 **XXX**

"This is Sif," the Asgardian announced into the radios, clearly in pain while struggling to stand from where Captain America had laid her down to rest.

" _Hey, don't move, or talk. You're hurt_ ," Falcon advised.

"I dropped my guard," the Asgardian groaned. "My assailant took the form of an ally: Phil Coulson."  
" _Yeah, we've got an evil Banner— we're calling him Robert— walking around, who mentioned him_ ," he informed her. " _Was he by chance older-looking than you remember?_ "

She frowned in thought for a moment before nodding, "Yes, yes he was. I was so surprised I didn't notice at first."

" _No biggie. Now, are you seriously good to go, or should we get you back to the quinjet?_ "  
"I'm not going anywhere except to solve this riddle," she growled while standing up, having never relaxed her grip upon her sword even while unconscious.

 **XXX**

Elsewhere on board

" _Alright, War Machine? You get that? It's confirmed, we've got an evil Coulson too_ ," the voice of Sam Wilson, the Falcon, said over the radio. " _Guess we're calling him Phil for now_."

Having decrypted their frequencies with something _his_ Bruce had come up with, the older Phil Coulson felt a stir of morbid interest inside. _Lady Sif seemed to recognize me when she saw me too_. Apparently no one had bothered to inform the alien that since meeting his counterpart in New Mexico, that her 'ally' had been stabbed to death. By Thor's brother at that. _No matter._

 **XXX**

Frantically the Hulk clawed at his arm, but no matter how much flesh he tore off, the silver infection dominated more and more of his flesh.

With clinical detachment, Robert continued to make verbal notes while assessing the situation. "I must admit, I'm impressed. The two of you are certainly more in tune now. I'd say that this is as powerful as you both were in Las Vegas, maybe even a little more so."

"Stop it, or I shoot!" Widow hissed with hate, jerking the man out of his reverie.

"Oh, sorry, I can't," Robert shrugged. "I can't stop it. I really can't, and you can probably tell that."  
She could see it in his face, his eyes, the slight tells like Bruce's. "Then you're no use to me."

Twitching her hand to the side, she fired one of her taser disks at him and he dropped like a sack of potatoes. She almost turned to help Bruce, when her mind caught up with her. Snapping her arm up, she shot the downed man in the knee.

"Gaaah!" he screamed as he bolted upright, clearly having played possum thanks to some precaution against the electrical charge. _I'd expect no less from_ my _Bruce if he was taking this seriously_ , Widow thought.

Then with a roar, the Hulk ripped his own arm off.

The limb fell to the ground and in a flash of green quickly dissolved into nothing, while the Other Guy floundered in agony, but still upright.

The Hulk was not an animal, however much he acted like one at times. An injured beast would try and hide itself away to recover or die, but there was enough of Bruce within him to manage the pain. More to the point, the one responsible had been left vulnerable by Banner's mate and—

All three of them clutched their heads as high-pitched noise struck at them, and Phil Coulson stepped forward with his oversized gun forged from an Asgardian superweapon. The first shot sent the disorientated and injured Hulk stumbling back, sprays of his acidic blood dissolving chunks of the deck, while the wily old agent ran forward to his accomplice.

A second shot bought the time necessary to slap ear guards on 'Robert' to dampen the noise, just as the Black Widow got up, having done the same ever since Captain America and Scarlet Witch had reported their enemies had a fondness for sonic weapons.

 _She only pretended to be incapacitated to lure me over_ , Phil realized as Death looked back at him through jade green eyes over the barrel of her gun.

Fortunately for him, he had already played his last card before even activating the sonic grenades.

Before she could pull the trigger, the wall behind where Phil's shots had been driving the Hulk exploded as a smaller Dark Elf ship smashed through it, guided by a homing beacon from the neighbouring hanger that his companion had been heading to from the start. A beacon that Phil was wearing.

Flying through the air, the Hulk flew over Phil's head and slammed into the wall behind him, but now he was so angry that he no longer even noticed the weaponized noise.

Still he hesitated.

Their ship having arrived right next to them thanks to its limited computer intelligence, Other-Banner and a man the Hulk had thought dead were starting to board. Despite the distance and his injuries, it would be trivial for Hulk to kill them. Prying open the ship with his bare hands to tear them out.

Yet Banner's mate was lying unmoving on the ground, pieces of debris surrounding her.

No, there was no other choice.

The Hulk leapt forward, gingerly cradling the Mate in his remaining arm, and ran from these strange enemies.

It was against his nature, against the anger the defined him, but even so he knew that neither he nor Banner could live without her anymore.

Or worse, they would become something that even the Hulk feared to comprehend.

Banner would find them another day, and on that day Hulk would make them pay.

In full.

 **XXX**

"Greetings, Avengers," Robert Bruce Banner declared as he collapsed into the piloting seat of the Dark Elf Harrow starfighter, keeping it in its horizontal orientation while the hangar doors started to open. "I'd advise evacuating. Our ship is going to lose power and crash into the ocean in a few minutes. I dare say it'll explode afterwards."

" _Am I talking to the leader of the Appendix?_ " the voice of Captain America echoed through the radio.

"What? The what!? _That's_ what you've been calling us!? Why're you calling us such a stupid name!? Goodbye!"

With a huff he turned off the radio, trying to ignore the pained groans from Phil as he applied emergency first aid to himself. In typical Natasha fashion, even while she was being struck by the debris she had still gotten off two shots, hitting Phil in the shoulder and leaving a nasty graze across the cheek.

They were lucky that she had been close enough to the ship when it auto-pilot had brought it in so that the debris had knocked her unconscious. Otherwise, she would have been free to kill them both. Phil's gun had a few more shots left in it, but not enough to keep the Hulk back for long, much less kill it.

Still, it had been far too close. Even ignoring how close the Avengers had come, if either of the two conspirators had been standing another inch closer, then they would have also been hit by the flying debris too. As it was, the scientist was doing all he could to ignore his own bleeding wound.

 _She probably coated the bullets with something too. A neurotoxin or paralytic, but it shouldn't be a problem for me to neutralize it._

Yet despite everything, including the entire might of 'Earth's Mightiest Heroes,' they had overcome adversity, and victory was theirs!

Then War Machine opened fire.

Black Widow had not just been feeding her husband directions, but also the team's aerial support.

Repulsor fire hammered the craft, while the quinjet came around with Falcon at the controls with ominous weaponry ready to fire, and an enraged Sif on the roof, sword at the ready.

"Computer! Weapons online! Engage!" the older man snapped, and the limited artificial intelligence obliged, advanced lasers firing back from concealed hatches.

War Machine took a glancing hit, and one of the quinjet's engines was also damaged despite the evasive maneuvers they both took, while the Harrow successfully fled.

"How bad?" Phil gasped as the ship shook and trembled, and they could both hear a strange pitch coming from the electronics.

"We'll have to scuttle this one too. I can get the cloak online," Robert winced as he explained, knowing he should have done so from the start, "but this is no good to us. Did you get the main packages aboard?"

"Yes," Phil assured him, knowing his friend had probably been too distracted while boarding to notice the two large objects in the very middle of the small ship.

 **XXX**

Mid-air

"Not good not good not good not good not good…" War Machine muttered as he struggled to get a response out of his computer systems as he fell, when suddenly he felt as if a massive hand had grabbed him and yanked him back up.

Dazed, he could only wait as someone peeled off his facemask, revealing the most beautiful sight he had ever seen.

"Are you alright?" Lady Sif gasped out, her lips inches from his own while her body was wrapped around the suit of armour, with a line of cable connecting her to the quinjet.

It was the only way Falcon would agree to let her ride atop of it, despite what she said about being able to endure the wind pressure long enough to board the escaping fighter.

"Never better," Rhodes answered with a grin, before both of them suddenly bobbed up and down like a yo-yo. "What the heck!?"

 **XXX**

Dark Elf Flagship

"Well, that happened," the Scarlet Witch deadpanned at the sight of the Hulk taking Sif's place atop of the quinjet, the Black Widow carefully resting in the crook of his remaining arm as the jet finally stopped bouncing up and down from the impact of his landing.

"Vision, can you fly?" Captain America asked as the three remaining Avengers aboard the carrier stood before the open spacecraft hanger doors.

In answer, the Synthoid grabbed the Scarlet Witch and their leader and took flight, visibly struggling. "Wanda," he warned, "you might have to help if I lose control."

"You can do it, Vis."

" _Ahoy!_ " a familiar voice broke in, as a fleet of quinjets could be seen decloaking and rapidly approaching in the distance. " _This is Stark. How're things going? We're getting some wild messages here; do you need a hand?_ "

As if in answer, whatever mysterious technology was keeping the Dark Elf Flagship afloat cut off, and the massive vessel fell to crash through the waters below.

"Everyone, get away!" Captain America barked, with the Avengers creating as much distance as they could, just in time to get away from the worst of it as the water below them exploded upwards as the alien ship self-destructed.

Stark did not even miss a beat. " _I'll take that as a yes_."

 **XXX**

Another Place

Another Time

 _Crawling forward on the stumps of his arms, crying from the toxic fumes that keep him from calling upon his power, he knows he is dying, but he dares not stop. Not now. Not yet. Not after all that has been lost, and what will be if_ they _succeed._

 _"_ _You," he coughs up blood before trying again, "you, you don't know wh-what you're doing!"_

 _Two of the three men outright ignore him, feverishly concentrating on their work. Coulson is on guard, not daring to spare the slightest bit of attention towards the pitiful figure._

 _Outside there is only the sound of screaming that has been so prevalent over these last horrible months since_ _Thanos' arrived._ _But this time he knows those voices are those of his friends, hoping, believing, that even while they are fighting and dying, he is making their sacrifices_ worth _something. But he has nothing more to give._

 _It is the woman who pays notice to him, calmly walking over. For the barest moment he fools himself into thinking there is a_ _spark of pity in her remaining eye, but he knows it is just his imagination._

 _She kneels down in front of him, blocking his path, the final straw that makes him stop struggling forward._

 _With nothing else to do, he takes in her appearance, the cybernetic hand just a few inches from his head, the red robotic ocular implant and traces of metal over her face. "That really doesn't suit you," he gasps out, knowing that words are the last card he has left. He jerks his chin at the unblemished side of her face, trying to ignore what he sees in that sole, beautiful green eye. "You should've had him give you something that compliments that."_

 _Then he gets serious._

 _"_ _You don't know what you're doing," he manages, using what is left of his life to try and make them_ listen! _"You have no idea what you're trying to do! This will only make things worse! You're playing with forces beyond your control!"_

 _And he would know, whatever else he had done in life, whatever his self-admitted hubris, he had known where to draw the line._

 _"_ _Is it almost ready?" she just calls out to one of the men behind them._

 _The clipped answer from Dr. Banner is a simple "Yes."_

 _As if they were as intimate as lovers, she leans forward. "Whatever happens, it can't be worse than this."_

 _"_ _We both know that's not true!" he snarls in desperation and fear. "It can always get worse!"_

 _To this the she only gives a small smile, and gets up to go, leaving him to die alone. But then he spots the blood dripping down from her as she walks away, and he knows. "You're dying, aren't you?" he spitefully calls out. "So what's it to you what happens!? Not like you're going to be there anyways. Let everyone else suffer!" At this she finally stops._

 _His sense of triumph is short-lived when he realizes it is only because she is picking up something he had overlooked: a carrier with a sleeping child. Then she looks back at him, that cold upward curve of her lips still there, but then it blossoms into one of joy._

 _He is sickened by it._

 _Nothing like that belongs on anyone who is about to commit the unthinkable. An act of madness that all his own rash acts pale and sob in the presence of._

 _"_ _We won't know unless we try," the Black Widow, Natasha Banner, says as if to answer and refute everything he has said. "But we're doing this so that our daughter will have a chance of happiness."_

 _As she walks away, her precious cargo shifts in her grasp_ _, and he meets the gaze of Laura Fury Banner._

 _Laura_ had only just been born _, still asleep from when she had been taken out of her tube of amniotic fluid and the chemicals her birth father had concocted._

 _So the first thing she ever sees is Doctor Stephen Strange. They are a strange pair, a fresh newborn and a dying man. But in that moment, he knows that this child is a pure soul. And as he looks at her, he feels a spark of hope return._

 _In that moment, the Sorcerer Supreme remembers one last time to let go of his fears and rationality, and chose to surrender himself to the flow, trusting that things would work out._

 _"_ _Where there is life, there is hope," he whispers with his last breath, entrusting the future to this child._

 _Laura is put down to rest on the ground again, and her wide eyes take in the sight of Eye of Agamotto being split open, revealing the Infinity Stone of Time._

 _The ground rumbles around them._

 _"_ _He's coming," Widow warns, voicing what they are all thinking._

 _"_ _No time to lose then," Dr. Robert 'Bruce' Banner declares, as they race onto their ship. Widow chuckles despite herself, but the other two just roll their eyes._

 **XXX**

 **Author Notes:**

 **Small technical detail, but yes Laura has a belly button despite being born in a tank. Her original umbilical cord was included.**

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 **Recommend fics:**

 **"** **Woke Up In Vegas (Married To The Enemy)" by** **Lacrimula Falsa**

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 **Next Chapter: The Avengers come to understand what is happening in "Putting It Together."**

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 **Please Review, and I will get back to you!**


	31. Putting It Together

For better or worse, Marvel owns all of this stuff, not me.

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Many thanks to my wonderful Beta, Jesuslovesmarina, who writes some pretty cool stories. Go read them!

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Chapter 31: Putting It Together

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 _Previously: The Avengers finally confronted the members of the Appendix, only to discover to their horror and disbelief that the two members are older versions of Dr. Bruce Romanoff-Banner and Phil Coulson._

 _When both Vision and Natasha Romanoff-Banner questioned the older version of Bruce (whom they refer to as 'Robert', for clarity), he told them many strange things, including mentioning Thanos himself, before escaping. The Appendix's ship crashed into the water, however, as he and the older version of Coulson made their getaway._

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 _'_ _All it takes is one bad day to reduce the sanest man alive to lunacy. That's how far the world is from where I am. Just one bad day. You had a bad day once. Am I right? I know I am. I can tell. You had a bad day and everything changed.'_

—The Joker

("Batman: The Killing Joke" by Alan Moore)

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Avengers Headquarters

Main meeting room

Not a word was spoken as the Avengers headed home. This circumstance was too big and confusing to let it degenerate into a shouting match of questions.

Silence was broken solely to take care of injuries, greet Natasha as she woke up, react in more than a little disbelief to Bruce's regrown (and hairless) arm once he had De-Hulked, and invite over a few guests left at the wedding party whose presence the Avengers believed would be beneficial for the upcoming meeting that they were all grimly anticipating.

But now, they were assembled.

Around the table, Bruce Romanoff-Banner was still coming to grips with how his life had taken on a new level in weirdness. First of all, he had finally met Laura's biological father/creator…who was somehow an evil doppelganger of himself. Moreover, this older man had made clear that since he had been too old to survive the process, he had been the one to sabotage Bruce's experiment to create the Hulk itself.

The arm wrapped around his daughter was also a brand-new one, familiar yet strange since it was hairless and pale because it had never been exposed to the sun before today. Yet it still felt comfortable and he had no problems using it. Even his muscles had grown back, just as Natasha said his clone had boasted.

As for his wife, she was holding a bag of ice to her head. In light of all this, it was no surprise that both Bruce and Natasha's free hands were tightly gripping one another.

Lady Sif was largely recovered, as was Steve.

Helen Cho was looking a little flustered, but still in her outfit from Bruce and Natasha's wedding, as were Jane Foster and Erik Selvig, with Darcy Lewis impatiently sitting beside them. All were wondering how so much could have happened in only a few hours.

Sam took a chair beside Steve to offer moral support, while Rhodes was doing the same for his own best buddy, who had just endured hours of baby-care.

Maria Hill and Fury were inscrutable, but everyone knew they were as shaken as everyone else.

Wanda sat beside Clint, hoping he would be able to help keep the others on task for what was to come. Vision had tried to take the remaining spot beside her, but Natasha stole it first.

Pepper indicated for Vision to sit beside her, but no sooner had Tony's rear touched down on her other side than her boyfriend exploded. "No more secrets! Did _anyone_ know? Evil old versions of Bruce and Coulson? _Seriously_? What's with this!?"

Steve almost said something about "Ultron" and "secrets" before Natasha preemptively kicked his shin. Fury spoke up before Tony noticed. "No one knew, Stark. You know that's why we're all here: to put our heads together to figure it out. Or figure out what questions we should be asking."

"Well that's just cute! And a waste of time while they're getting away," the billionaire grumbled. "Who knows what they'll do next?"

"Apologies, Tony," Vision quietly broke in, "but this is the right call." The Synthoid had finally stabilized after his own encounter with the doppelganger of Robert Bruce Romanoff-Banner, or 'Robert' as they were calling him so as to not be confused with 'their' Bruce, and Vision had a dark suspicion of what they were dealing with. "Our enemies are far more dangerous than we imagined, and I'm afraid I know why.

"I'm also afraid that in the spirit of openness, that I have a confession to make."

For a millisecond he let himself replay a particular memory.

 **XXX**

[Flashback]

 _He stood before his creator, the one who was so unique and yet so full of pain that he had to be stopped, no matter the cost. Despite this, Vision felt compelled to try and save this individual one last time, to give him a choice. And so he said, "Humans are odd. They think order and chaos are somehow opposites and try to control what won't be. But there is grace in their failings. I think you missed that."_

 _Contemptuously, Ultron merely looked away and snapped, "They're doomed!"_

 _"_ _Yes," Vision agreed sadly, grieving for the being he would now shortly have to kill in cold blood, and the eventual death of mankind, and after a contemplative pause he looked Ultron in the eyes once more, and mused aloud, "But a thing isn't beautiful because it lasts. It is a privilege to be among them."_

 **XXX**

Present

He turned to look each of them in the eye first. "Ultron wasn't insane, not at first."

"Uh, no. No, I'm pretty sure he was bonkers from the start," Tony refuted, with everyone else nodding.

"He was misguided, and so full of such pain that it drove him nearly destroy the world. But from the start he believed that what he was doing for the best."

"Vis, what part of destroying the world is for the best!?" Wanda angrily protested.

"In the end, yes, but originally his intention was that either humanity would be destroyed—"

"—or it would evolve," Bruce breathed. "Creating a cataclysm that would push humanity to become stronger!"

"'Because we _want_ you to fight'," Natasha quietly quoted from memory. "'To pit the heroes and Enhanced and people like you against each other. A war of the fittest, where victory can only come from being ruthless enough, practical enough, willing to cut down even those who were once your teammates. That is the only way humanity will survive.'"

She speared her cold green eyes at Vision. "And you think that these other versions of Bruce and Coulson—"

"Robert and Phil, no— _Phillip_ ," Tony interrupted.

"—That they and Ultron," Natasha continued without missing a beat, "were all talking about the same threat? And that you know what it is, too."

Vision brushed his fingers against the yellow stone in his forehead. "This, whatever it truly is, told me things, as it must have done for Ultron, whose intelligence also sprang from it. The Stone whispered to both of us a name, a threat, one that the Avengers as they are could not match. An alien being that would consume humanity if it should ever turn its full attention towards us. I even believe that Loki was merely a pawn on its behalf."

They were all tense now, but Lady Sif's face in particular was strained. "What was the name!?" she hissed.

"Thanos."

 **XXX**

Xandor, capital of the Nova Empire

"The Guardians of the Galaxy?" Thor skeptically rumbled.

"Yes," Nova Prime Irani Rael confided. "They were a group of outlaws who nearly single-handedly defeated Ronan, the Kree fanatic. Not only did they expose him as a minion of Thanos until he betrayed the Mad Titan, but used the Infinity Stone to destroy him!"

The Asgardian prince paced back in forth for a moment before reeling around with a scowl and flashing eyes. "Then why am I only hearing about this now!?"

"To protect them of course," she steely answered. "We owed them our lives, and they would not have appreciated Asgard's interest in them. Since that time, the Guardians have become a highly respectable mercenary group that has done much to safeguard life in this universe." Frankly, Rael was surprised that Asgard had missed all the fantastic rumours spreading about the group. "But with how the war against Thanos is progressing, we reached out to them."

The alliance of civilizations opposed to Thanos were not _losing_ per say, but their mounting casualties were daunting, especially since they remained unaware of the extent of Thanos' forces. Or his personal whereabouts. "It turns out that they were about to make contact with us in turn, and deeply desire the death of Thanos too; particularly Gamora, who is his adopted daughter, and Drax, whose family was killed by Ronan."

Frowning, Thor calmed himself and took a seat. "Tell me more. Please."

 **XXX**

Earth  
Avengers Headquarters

Meeting Room

"…I assume from whatever Asgardian word Sif just said, which I also bet if I repeated Rogers would wash my mouth with soap," Tony drawled, "that whoever Thanos is, he's bad?"

"The worst," Sif growled. "And it does not surprise me at all to learn he was involved with Loki. It would also do much to explain the severity of his actions."

"Are you saying that Loki was merely the _pawn_ of someone else when he invaded us? That Mr. Narcissist might even have been _afraid_ of who he was answering to?" Fury asked in a polite tone that revealed none of his own inner turmoil.

"It is most likely," Sif admitted, also conflicted as she thought about Loki. "You have no concepts of the horrors Thanos is capable of. Even a saint would emerge from his embrace as a monster. He twists the minds of people for his own sick pleasure. He is the reason that Thor is elsewhere, bringing down the full might of Asgard and the Nine Realms and every other power in the heavens in the hope," now her voice rose, " _the hope,_ that they might triumph over him!"

"That's irrelevant right this moment," Clint interrupted. "Thanos is in space, and Thor is apparently already doing what he can. First we've got to get some idea about the threats here at home."

"Yes," Steve nodded. "Vision, why didn't you tell us before?"

"What could you have done?" Vision asked. "As Lady Sif has made clear, strength alone would never triumph. Much less what Earth could raise." He cocked his head. "And what would you have said if I told you that the _stone_ my head was the one giving me these warnings?"

Some of them were sheepish at that, admitting that they would have reacted poorly to his warning, but Steve, Tony, and Natasha were clearly still unimpressed.

"That is why I worked to help ensure that we remained together as a team in the hope of discovering some kind of solution, and failing in this, enjoying what time we had left together."

The tension spiked in the room at the despairing words of one of the most powerful beings on the planet.

"However, the Appendix has changed everything, because it appears that Robert and Phillip have traveled through _time_ itself, from a world where Thanos did come, and took everything from them."

"…Which is why they're geezers," said Tony. "Even if time travel were impossible."

"It is," Sif sighed, having also put many of the clues together, "with one exception." She pointed at Vision's forehead, and the yellow gem that graced it. "One of the brother Stones to _that_ gives the user the ability to manipulate time itself. With it, it is feasible that they could come back."

"From a world where everyone they knew was dead, probably from horrible causes, to one where they were all alive," Bruce wearily observed. "No wonder they snapped."

"And from a world where the Hulk never existed!" Natasha sharply informed him. She turned to look at Tony. "Robert didn't know you. He didn't expect you to catch onto him like you did, which means _you_ were probably dead."

"No Hulk, then no one to catch me when I fall out of the wormhole in New York!" Tony realized aloud, before throwing a smile at his friend. "Tell Big Green I said 'thanks'."

"The battle would have been much harder against the Chitauri," Steve mused, "and Loki would've tried something different instead of planning to set the Hulk loose on the helicarrier. Without him, a lot of things would've changed from what we know."

"Butterfly effect," Jane Foster agreed, looking distracted. "Sif, what are the other Stones?"

The Asgardian hesitated, but knew that they needed all information on the table if they were to truly piece all of this together. Even she and Vision were clearly missing some important details. "There are six of the Infinity Stones: Soul, Time, Power, the Tesseract which was really the Space Stone," the Avengers were startled at this, while she stopped to point at Vision's forehead, "Mind," she looked at Jane, "and lastly, the Aether, or Reality Stone, is what you had inside of you. Once I would have claimed it impossible for them to have found the Time Stone, but given how mysteriously active the others have been these last few years, especially around Earth, I can accept that they may have found it."

"So Time and Space are completely separate?" the astrophysicist clarified.

"Yes," Sif said, puzzled.

"And what would have happened to the Time Stone after they used it? If it were the only one they had? Would it stay where it was while they moved through time?"

"To avoid having two versions of the Stone existing at once, yes. Why?"

Jane slapped her palm down on the table. "That's why they're so old!"

"We don't know how old they are, Jane," Darcy pointed out.

"They were saying they had white hair and wrinkles! That's old!"

Bruce and the other older people shot Thor's girlfriend a flat look, but she kept going.

"If they didn't have the Space Stone, then they'd have gotten lost!" Everyone looked at her in confusion. "Look, the Earth spins at over one thousand miles per hour, while revolving around the sun at sixty-seven thousand miles per hour. The sun orbits our Milky Way galaxy at—"

"We get it!" Darcy interjected, looking bored. "Things in space move!"

"What Jane's trying to say," Selvig clarified, "is that if you traveled just one second through time, you would be dumped at the edge of the solar system."

"They had a faulty time machine!" Bruce cried out. Seeing everyone looking at him in confusion, he clarified. "We've been watching a lot of Doctor Who."

"TARDIS, or Time And Relative Dimension In Space," Natasha went on. "It doesn't just travel through time, when it travels it stays relative to certain locations, automatically compensating to stay with them even though space itself is moving."

Now everyone was catching on. "So," Sam spoke up, "just to clarify, because these people went back in time, wherever they ended up, it was far away from Earth, and they were in that damaged Dark Elf ship, which they had because something different happened in the timeline when that ship came to Earth, because the Hulk wasn't around?"

Sif's brow was furrowed in calculation. "It would have taken them years to get home given the condition that ship was in. Their minds were already burdened with whatever nightmares Thanos brought to Midgard, and then they were stuck alone together with nothing but their loss and pain for who knows how long."

"On that ship with its alien security thing that was trying to drive us crazy for even the short time we were there," Wanda breathed in horror.

"They'd probably have come up with something to stop that," Bruce theorized, "but I don't know how they'd have been able to test it for such long periods."

"Soooo what you're trying to say," Darcy put in, "is that whoever we're dealing with really is utterly nuts? Like, certifiably?"

"…Yes," Bruce, Natasha, Jane, Sif, and Vision all said as one.

Rhodes banged his forehead into the tabletop in frustration as he struggled to keep up. "Time travel. Of course. What nonsense next? Parallel universes?"

Bruce decided to spare the man the knowledge that technically, the time travelers would have had to come from a parallel universe.

 **XXX**

Woods, somewhere within the United States

As his body contorted from an awkward sitting angle, Robert Banner started digging the graves from where he sat on a log, the leg that Romanoff had shot in the knee resting up beside him. Hence his difficulty getting dirt out of the hole. Still, he had to do his part to help out.

Phillip, who had been working non-stop since they had landed despite his own age and injured shoulder. Dragging their equipment out of the Dark Elf Harrow, flagging down that truck from the nearby road, killing the drivers so that they could load the gear into it, and now destroying what was left of the starfighter after Robert had stripped it of everything of value. The least he could do in the meantime was burying those poor drivers.

Sad, but necessary. They would have understood. And if Thanos came before Earth was ready, then what Phillip had done was an act of mercy really.

 **XXX**

Avenger's Headquarters

Main Meeting Room

"Alright," Fury's firm voice broke in to seize everyone's attention. "This is still all just a theory, but now we're getting somewhere. So what do they want? Make Earth stronger to stand up to Thanos? But how do rising tensions between the Avengers and the government, and between you guys, help that?"

"Like he said, survival of the fittest," Steve growled. "Whichever side wins, whether it be independent heroes, or those registered with the government, must be the right way to manage those with powers, and thus the strongest and best way to stop Thanos."

"Like we said, they're crazy." Tony nodded, itching for a bottle of brandy.

"Don't be stupid, Stark," Natasha snapped. "Their motives may be insane, but they're going about this calmly and methodically, and that only makes them more dangerous. Even if we can now get into their heads, they are skilled and professional enough to anticipate us, and they have advanced and unknown technology that give them opportunities that we cannot predict."

"Given that it's Phil Coulson we're dealing with, at least we have a better idea of how they've been manipulating stuff," Maria Hill observed. 'Stuff' like killing off or coercing influential people, or guaranteeing the approval of the Avengers Initiative. "He would have had the clearance and skills to infiltrate SHIELD too, which goes a long way to explain how they did everything while still remaining under our radar."

"And how they stayed hidden from HYDRA too, and manipulated them, if they knew from the future that it still existed," Natasha threw in. "Probably how they got their hands on Project: Insight."  
"We do not have to worry about that anymore," Vision assured them. "I accessed the file while we were there. Not only did they fail to take with them a copy of Project: Insight, they were also finding it increasingly unsuccessful. Not only were our efforts to plant false data in our computer files bearing fruit, but as events grew increasingly more complicated, we were increasingly defying their predictions, or even doing things they never considered." He shot Fury and then Steve a pointed look. "I made sure to delete the program while I had the opportunity."

"Good," Steve smiled, while Fury was silent and expressionless.

"So who's this Coulson guy exactly?" Jane asked. "I think Thor mentioned him before."

"Coulson was the man I called my Good Eye," Fury explained. "A phenomenal field agent, who was especially good at getting into people's heads. He's the guy that Romanoff and Barton answered to when I was unavailable. Think James Bond, but without the predisposition towards womanizing, gambling, or reckless improvisation."

"Those are some of the best parts!" Natasha cried out with mock horror. "But don't forget to mention how he and Hill," she continued nonchalantly, not even throwing their liaison from SHIELD a glance, "have been going behind our backs to try and fool us into thinking he's still dead, and not secretly the new director of the _real_ SHIELD."

Fury and Hill stiffened.

"Yeah, that too," Steve agreed.

"So he doesn't know that you know he's not dead?" Darcy clarified.

"Yep~," Natasha grinned, "still thinks we're clueless."

"As much fun as it is going to be to pop in on Agent and say 'Hello'," Tony interjected, pointedly referring to the man as 'Agent,' and not 'Phil,' "what about evil Brucey? How's he play into this?"

"He's Bruce without ever becoming the Hulk," Natasha explained as if it were obvious. "One of the world's most brilliant scientists, who was probably brought in to work on finding the Tesseract."

"All of your brilliance, but none of your morality."

Silence fell as Bruce turned to look at Wanda, but she did not flinch from his gaze.

"I saw it," she went on. "What you would've become if you hadn't become the Hulk. If you hadn't met the Avengers. Like you, angry, all the time, but unlike you he's actually lashing out at the world instead of caging it up inside of him."

As one, Natasha reached over with one arm to pull Bruce and Laura into a full hug, while Clint did the same for Wanda.

Bruce tensed up for a moment, but then breathed out, letting loose the last of his self-hatred. He returned the embrace, touching his wife's forehead with his own.

"Thanks, Nat," he whispered.

 **XXX**

Woods, somewhere within the United States

Still struggling with digging the graves, Robert found himself almost missing the Dark Elf carrier ship that he had spent over a decade living within. _Understandable_ , he accepted, _given how much happened in there, and what we had accomplished. Of course, there is still so much we have yet to do._

There had been setbacks of course, but Robert had suspected from the start that messing around with the Time Stone to that extent would have repercussions, especially since they been deliberately intending to not use the Stone and the Earth as a fixed point while traveling through time.

After all, doing so would have meant appearing right beside the Time Stone at an earlier point in its past, which would have been right within a secret sanctum of magic wielders who were all trained fighters. Moreover, for all his brilliance and skill, Dr. Stephen Strange had lacked the experience of the previous Sorcerer Supreme. They would have been challenging her and all of centuries of combat, right within her home itself.

No, all those years alone within their dark little home had been worth it. Otherwise they could have very well suffered defeat at the very beginning of the Mission.

Besides, it had given them plenty of time to plan and prepare. _His_ Natasha had been the first to remind him of that, even after they had discovered how far they had had to go.

Robert halted his digging in thought. It had been after her death that he had first envisioned altering his past self into the ultimate fighter, but the reaction of the younger Romanoff had confused him.

 _I gave him an immortal body that could protect anyone he came to care for from any threat! A valuable weapon against Thanos! Sure, there are some problems still; I never realized how much anger I had back_ _then_ , and of course whatever the holier-than-thou Bruce Banner had paled before Robert's, _but thanks to Natas— Romanoff, he's making it work! What's his problem!? Is he really that concerned about other people calling him a monster? What does their opinion matter, anyway?_

Without having ever endured what he and Phillip had, however, those selfish brats had no right to criticize them!

 **XXX**

Avenger's Headquarters

Main Meeting Room

"Well that's interesting," Tony said after another moment. "Ow!"

Pepper and her elbow were unapologetic, but the redhead spoke up for the first time. "If we're talking about a scientist like Bruce, then that would help explain the Hulk."

"No," Sif firmly declared. "Asgard's greatest minds have tried to figure out what happened, and failed. Your pardon," she apologized to Bruce, "but this science should still be beyond anything you're capable of."

Bruce just waved it off without taking offense.

"Can I see?" Selvig asked. Everyone looked at him in surprise, but he merely shrugged. "Just curious. And I've been working with Bruce recently, so I might still spot something. Some similarities."

With a small scoff, Tony brought up the relevant file and decrypted it on one of the table's holo-screens, sending it over to Selvig so that he could read up on what Tony had learnt about the Hulk and the careful and deliberate sabotage that had created him.

"It is a little weird to think of you as the enemy, Bruce," Tony admitted. "I mean, even with everything else you've been playing at, this guy's really on the aggressive. He's been playing us like some sort of Maestro!"

"And he's different enough from the real Bruce that he's hard to predict," Clint added. "How're we supposed to find him? Not to mention this… _Phillip?_ "

Bruce felt touched that his friend regarded him as the 'real' Bruce, even if Robert was the older of them. "And why make the Hulk in the first place? I mean, I get making a super-soldier, and only trusting yourself, but why Las Vegas? Turning all of the people into mindless berserkers isn't going to do any good against anyone with a spaceship, especially when they burned out so fast."

"That's a last-ditch weapon we're talking about," Tony replied, with the air of someone who considered himself the final authority on the subject. He snapped his fingers as inspiration hit. "Pushing forward arms development by revealing or creating a threat to push the world into creating weapons to kill the impossible. Don't you see?" he cried as he wildly looked around. "Bruce was the prototype, the first attempt, but even that sparked tons of new big guns and bombs that we'd have never made if people didn't know he existed! Even I went and built an army of suits to fight the Hulk!" Sadly all those suits, being used as drones, had been destroyed is Las Vegas.

"They may very well have a successful version," Bruce darkly warned. "A way to make the Hulk permanent. The idea of dropping city-sized rock on the planet like Ultron tried to, probably wouldn't even faze them. And remember the Abomination?"

 **XXX**

[Flashback]

 _"_ _Wait, what's—" Bruce began, when suddenly on the screen a figure dressed head-to-toe in the blackest clothing appeared out of nowhere and started leaping at the Abomination again and again, ducking under fists and harassing the monster._

 _"_ _He's leading Blonksy away," Steve noted, "keeping it up close and personal to divert attention."_

 _Then, the Abomination collapsed._

 _"_ _Wait, what?"_

 _"_ _Rewind and replay at slower speeds," Vision told them, his eyes narrowing intently._

 _"_ _Keep another screen showing real time," Steve added._

 _Slowly, frame by frame they saw something like green fire explode out of the vicinity of Blonsky's head, who then collapsed. A glance at the second screen showed that the body was now only human-sized._

 **XXX**

Present

Bruce turned to Vision. "They sent the Abomination to attack Wakanda and then killed him, right?"

The Synthoid nodded once.

"Then they've got a way to kill and likely even control whatever they create!"

"No bet," Natasha said. "Not with those nanites they used to hurt the Big Guy. As for Wakanda, they just pulled one of the most technologically advanced nations, and the most isolationist, back into the world."

"Oh, well, this is pretty straightforward!"

They all snapped around to look at an excited Selvig as he rapidly poured his way through the file he had been given.

"Why yes, this incorporates concepts of Sharinglanf and Hatamauri! Ingenious, really!"

Everyone looked confused. "Pardon?" Steve asked.

Used to laymen being confused, Selvig elaborated. "I said Sharinglanf. It utilizes bottalayna and parshousi to generate markterian, which would really explain a lot!"

Before anyone could say something else, Sif held up an authoritative hand to silence the others. "Doctor Selvig, where did you learn those words?"

"Why, what's wrong?" he asked in confusion."

"I've only heard similar words once before, and read the tongue afterwards. Those are Dark Elf!"

As the quickest to recover, Tony leaned forward intently. "Are you saying that the Hulk is based off Dark Elf technology!?"

"The Dark Elves were as advanced as Asgard," Jane excitedly exclaimed. "More advanced in some cases!"

Eyes wide with emotions she dared not name, Sif swallowed and gestured to needlessly ensure she had their attention. "When Jane Foster was with us on Asgard, and the Dark Elves came for her, they had amongst them a warrior—"

 **XXX**

[Flashback]

 _Cold and cruel, Malekith, walked with knife in-hand to his last lieutenant. "You will be the last of the Kursed," he decreed._

 _"_ _Let my life be sacrificed," faithful Algrim stated without qualm nor fear. "It is no less than our people did, or you have done," he recounted, speaking as if they had chosen their fate, and that Malekith had not poured out the blood of his Dark Elf subjects to escape the wrath of Asgard following the failure of their first attempt to return the universe to one of eternal night._

 _Their eyes met in understanding, and ruler of the Dark Elves stabbed his blade deep into the other's gut._

 _Algrim struggled against the pain, fighting the urge to make a sound, and Malekith bent his forehead against his subordinate's in a sign of respect. "You will become darkness, cursed to this existence until it consumes you."_

 _A stone with fiery veins within it was passed into Malekith's hand, and he slowly pushed it into Algrim's wound, hiding it there for his infiltration of Asgard. "Until then, no power our enemies possess can stop you."_

 **XXX**

Present

"—that we could not stop no matter who or what we sent against it," Sif continued.

 **XXX**

[Flashback]

 _Face bloody yet determined, Thor stared down the approaching figure of Algrim, now larger, hulking with muscles as spikes jutted out of his body. Raising his hand towards his foe, the Thunderer called forth his mighty weapon._

 _Sure and true Mjolnir flew towards Alrgim to strike him down from behind, yet almost without pause the Kurse backhanded away the hammer forged from the heart of a dying star._

 _Unhindered, the Dark Elf proceeded to beat Thor as he lay on the ground._

 **XXX**

Present

Jane's head bent forward in grief and horror at the memory of those trying hours, and all the death and destruction she had witnessed. They had barely escaped a far worse fate, after all.

"Then what happened to him?" Vision asked.

"Loki set off a miniature black hole on its torso," Sif flatly answered, "at the cost of his own life. Unfortunately, Asgard does not possess that technology, nor does anyone else anymore."

"But you believe this is related to the Hulk, don't you?" Bruce asked. "The ability to transform someone into a super-strong version of themselves."

"They were called the Kursed, and yes. The transition was temporary, and would end in death. That may be why the process is not permanent for you."

"But if it was, then the Hulk would have both your brains and the Big Guy's body," Natasha elaborated. She pointedly turned to look at Selvig to bring everyone else's attention onto him. "Selvig, does all of this sound reasonable to you?"

"Hmm," the older man absently grunted before noticing them all again. "Oh, yes, yes, it does. Frankly amazing really, but yes, it appears so. Some of it escapes me, but I think that's what this other Bruce –Robert, you said?— made when he mixed in all this Gamma radiation stuff. He changed it up a lot…made it more potent, maybe. Or not. Hard to say."

Calm and composed, Steve leaned forward. "How do you know this, Dr. Selvig?"

Fury mirrored the hero's posture, but unlike the hero was far more intimidating. "While we're on the subject, the report you gave SHIELD about the Convergence, when all those portals appeared in the sky over Greenwich, was rather vague. Going on about how the ancient Mayans, Chinese, Egyptians, and others had built all their monuments and great constructions using those gravitational effects, which helped you map out where it was going to happen next. At the time, we just put it down to you being a genius, your intuition, and the drugs you were on, but what do you have to say now?"

"Uh, Erik, I uhm, never really understood it either," Jane confessed, before getting a little flustered. "But I always just thought you were just making leaps in judgment, not that it was the drugs."

"That's what I thought it was," Darcy deadpanned.

Looking confused, Selvig fiddled with his hands. "Well, I don't know," old man awkwardly admitted, wondering why he was starting to feel so uncomfortable.

"Almost as if it were sleeping deep inside your mind," Sif gently asked.

Relieved, he nodded. "Yes! It all just came to me. Almost as if…oh."

His jaw dropped in horror.

 **XXX**

[Flashback]

 _"_ _Put it over there," Dr. Selvig gestured to an assistant and fellow mind slave as he looked up from the strange machine he was working on. With a slightly unhinged smile he then walked over to Clint Barton who was standing to the side. "Where'd you find all these people?" he asked as the noise of others working in the background drifted over._

 _"_ _SHIELD has no shortage of enemies, Doctor," Hawkeye answered, habit making his tone evasive despite his current condition. "This the stuff you need?" He held up a tablet displaying some pictures._

 _"_ _Yeah, Iridium, it's found in meteorites. It forms anti-protons," Selvig explained while absently constructing a new component. "It's very hard to get ahold of."_

 _"_ _Especially if SHIELD knows you need it."_

 _"_ _I didn't know," Selvig reassured him brightly, before he noticed their approaching Master. "Hey! The Tesseract is showing me so much. It's more than just knowledge, it's... truth."_

 **XXX**

Present

"The Tesseract…" he whispered as comprehension hit him. Whirling he stabbed his finger at Vision. "Where'd you get your Stone from!? Where!?"

"Loki's Scepter, to which you were also directly exposed when it was used to control you," Vision grimly answered, his face also contorted with realization. "And you were there for the Aether, which makes three. More than anyone here, you have been recklessly exposed to the Infinity Stones and their powers. Who knows what else flowed into your mind!?"

"You, or future you, helped him make it! The Other Guy!" Bruce exclaimed with comprehension. Seeing the looks he was getting, he waved his hand in dismissal. "After seeing the whole world fall apart! But that was the missing key, and the reason why even Asgard can't figure it all out! They had a Dark Elf ship and its technology somehow—"

"And the butterfly effect of not having the Hulk around for the Battle of New York changed things for when the Dark Elves came in their timeline, meaning the space ship was still retrievable," Tony interrupted.

Bruce threw his best friend a nod of agreement before continuing. "—and then you, with your subconscious mind, filled in the gaps with knowledge from the Infinity Stones, which is somehow beyond what anyone else has! That's how they made it work!"

.

.

.

"We may not have everything," Sif finally said, "but I think we now have most of it."

"But what we don't know is what they're planning now that their Plan A's down the toilet and they're desperate," Tony warned. "We know how they got to this point, but no idea what they'll do next. And to top it all off, we're all sure they're clinically nutso."

"No excuses," Natasha coldly hissed. "They're still too dangerous to live." Her husband was silent, but there was a dangerous look in his eyes.

Some of the Avengers looked at her and Bruce in concern, but Steve gave a quick shake of his head. Now was not the time to address the couple's attitude; not after the emotional day they had all endured.

Their marriage had been interrupted (even if they had still been able to exchange their vows), followed by receiving earth-shattering revelation after revelation. To push them now was the worst thing any of them could do.

"That's getting ahead of ourselves," their leader said aloud instead. "But there's somewhere else we can go for some more insight on what they might do, and it's time to stop with the stupid secrets and have everyone on the same page."

Captain America turned to give Fury and Hill a sharp look.

"Where can we find Phil Coulson? The one that Loki supposedly killed?"

 **XXX**

 **Author Notes:**

 **Sorry for all of the explanations, but hopefully things a lot clearer now, along with hints of what is to come. The part about how moving through just time would leave you stranded elsewhere is strongly inspired by Atomic Robo.**

 **And no, there will not be a huge focus on "Agents of SHIELD" in the next chapter. A lot of people have not seen it (heck, I have been unable to see season 4 myself!), so I will be working to keep it so there is minimal confusion or spoilers.**

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 **Next Chapter: "The Secret Avengers."**

 **Robert and Philip also return next chapter as they put their new plan into motion.**

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 **Please Review, and I will get back to you!**


	32. The New York Accords

For better or worse, Marvel owns all of this stuff, not me.

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Many thanks to my both wonderful Beta, Jesuslovesmarina, and to Qoheleth, who each write some pretty cool stories. Go read them!

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Chapter 32: The New York Accords

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 **Note to readers:**

 **Due to necessities of the story, and how some of you may not be up to date on the Agents of SHIELD TV show, the characters from there are slightly AU at this point.**

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 _Previously: The Avengers discovered that the masterminds behind several of the most recent threats to the world, including efforts to both create and manipulate the Avengers, were in fact a Bruce Banner and Phil Coulson from a future ruined by Thanos. The two men, older than their present counterparts, were nicknamed 'Robert' and 'Phil' by the Avengers for clarification. Driven insane by grief and the means used to travel through time, their plot is to make Earth 'stronger' through their own version of 'survival of the fittest,' including the creation of the Hulk._

 _During the debriefing where the Avengers worked this out, the heroes revealed that they were well aware that the Phil Coulson they were familiar with was both alive and the new Director of SHIELD, much to the shock of Nick Fury and Maria Hill. Following their discussions, it was decided it was best to go meet with Coulson themselves._

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" _I've lived a long time. Some might say, longer than I_ deserve.

" _But in those same years, it became clear to me... We live among_ gods. _Some even say that's what_ we _are. We being_ us. _That_ we _are gods._ I _say, humbly_...

"... _That's_ not _what we are. That's not even what we_ aspire _to be_.

" _There is so much to love about this world, our home, so much we are charged with never losing_ sight. _Life, liberty...the pursuit of happiness..._

[…]

" _But we aren't most people. We are_ heroes. _We Recognize_ threats... _And do our best to_ end _them. We_ protect _._

 _"_ _We run_ toward _a fight because that is sometimes the best way to make_ peace. _We_ inspire. _We understand the eyes of the_ world _are on us. Pushing us. Holding us. Praying we don't let them_ down."

-Superman/Clark Kent

'The Dark Knight III: The Master Race' by Frank Miller and Brian Azzarello

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Secret SHIELD Headquarters

The Playground

"So why're we doing this meeting here, and not on the helicarrier?" asked Lance Hunter, former British Special Air Service, turned mercenary, turned loyal SHIELD agent. "Just saying."

"Because they probably already know about this place anyways," sighed Bobbi Morse, his partner and ex-wife/current girlfriend.

"Didn't you have a thing for Hawkeye? Isn't he coming?"

"No Hunter, that was just a rumour, just like they've paired him up with every other female agent, and a bunch of the men too," Bobbi lightly chastised, aware that he was just trying to relieve some of the tension the others were feeling.

Particularly the fans.

Daisy Johnson a.k.a. Skye was practically dancing up and down on her toes, while the scientists Leo Fitz and Jemma Simmons were hardly better off.

"Well if he's single there's a few people here who'll happily throw themselves at him," Hunter smirked. "Or any of the Avengers for that matter."

Bobbi, Daisy, and "Mack" Mackenzie all punched his shoulders at that, with the big man finally voicing what they were all –even Hunter— really worried about. "If they knew about SHIELD this whole time, the whole story, why didn't they ever say anything? Why keep even Hill in the dark?"

At this Daisy's own frustration resurfaced. "Yeah! I mean c'mon! We're SHIELD! We're the good guys. Why aren't they working with us more? Are they upset about something!?"

Technically, the reborn SHIELD and the Avengers had already been quietly working together, on projects such as the massive ongoing one across the African continent, or dealing with outbreaks of Inhumans.

Although, given how they had been able to prevent the majority of the Terrigen Crystals from falling into the water, the number of people to spontaneously develop powers, particularly with unstable individuals or unstable powers, had been relatively minor. What was concerning however, was how those joint missions with the Avengers had been coordinated by Maria Hill, and without the agency's most senior spies (particularly those currently present) being involved. Yet somehow the heroes had learnt the truth, as well as the location of SHIELD's most secure headquarters. There were several possible motives for why they had not said anything before now…

"The Avengers always had a rocky relationship with SHIELD. Even Black Widow and Hawkeye became distant from us near the end," Melinda May, both their most senior agent and Director Phil Coulson's most trusted confidant, informed them, her tone silencing further discussion.

At that, the hanger doors opened above them, and the Avenger's quinjet descended into the subterranean base.

 **XXX**

On the landing quinjet

"An underground lair! Why does Agent get one? We should totally get one!" Tony declared.

"That's not a bad idea," Natasha replied. "But we'll need more than one. And make sure there's a tropical one."

"Please don't encourage him," Bruce sighed.

"But it'll keep him too occupied to get into trouble, dear."

"I like the way you think almost as much as I love hearing you call me that," he smiled back.

Tony gave an exaggerated moan. "Alright, let's get this over with so we can send these two off on their honeymoon."

"Oh, you'll all have to find your own way back," Natasha informs them. "We're taking the quinjet so you can't do any last-minute surprises before we take off."  
"You wound me!"

"Careful or she might get serious about it," Wanda smirks.

Tony lay a palm across his chest. "No, truly, do you really think I'd do something juvenile like stuff your car full of packing peanuts or something?"  
"No," Natasha said just as Bruce said, "Yes." He threw his wife a surprised look and she clarified. "He'd use a suit to steal our car and fly it off somewhere, forcing us to take the car he's gave us as a gift, and once we're too far away from everybody else, something would happen."

Eyes widening in horror, Bruce nodded. "Probably like suggestive songs playing through a speaker system that's just as reinforced against bullets as the rest of that armoured vehicle."

"I'm quite proud of it," Tony grinned, smoothly changing the topic. "That beauty can humiliate a tank now that I'm done with it."

Sitting on the seats to the side, Maria Hill, former Deputy Director of SHIELD, knew the Avengers were keeping up their stupid banter to help make her crack and ask them how they possibly knew that Phil Coulson was still alive.

Alive after Fury had used his death –Loki really had successfully murdered him— to unify the Avengers.

But she would not give the heroes the satisfaction.

 _Probably the real reason Fury stayed behind_ , she darkly thought. _None of his 'Making clear Coulson's the one in charge now,' nonsense._

For his part, Barton had been forcefully sent home by Romanoff, — _No, Romanoff-Banner now. Man, it's been a long day_ — with the snappish remark: "You're retired now, and if you keep forgetting that I'll shave you bald!"

Clint had gotten the message.

"So does this base have any decent entertainment, or something?" Tony asked Sif.

"I was not paying attention to anything like that, no," she diplomatically answered. While preparing to head over, the Asgardian admitted that she had been to Midgard twice before since Thor had battled the Dark Elves in Greenwich, and both times had fought beside SHIELD and Phil Son-of-Coul. While she had been wary at first, given how Thor had told her of his death, the agent had also been referred to as a man of honour, and she had seen no evidence to the contrary. So when he had carefully asked that he be the one to reveal his true status to Thor, Sif had respected this request.

Just before the quinjet settled onto the pavement and caused a disturbance, Natasha scooped up a sleeping Laura, while Bruce snagged the bag of food for her and other supplies.

Bruce was in sharp shirt and pressed pants, while the others were in uniform, but still aiming for a more 'business casual' approach to this. They wanted to put the agency at ease, but make it clear they were still serious about what needed to be discussed.

Captain America removed his helmet and Falcon his goggles, Black Widow deactivated the lights on her suit, and Tony wore a business suit but with a distinctive briefcase at his side and a visible earplug to connect him with FRIDAY. Sif, Vision, and Wanda were wore their regular uniforms, but that was only because anything more would be too relaxed for them would require their full civilian attire which would be inappropriate for this meeting.

 **XXX**

In a proper universe, the first meeting between these SHIELD agents and Earth's Mightiest Heroes should have been in the heat of battle as they worked together to save the world, or at the Avengers compound where the spies would be welcomed as fellow defenders. Some fireworks to celebrate it would be nice too, and frankly all the agents wished Thor was present.

Especially the women.

…In hindsight, the men were perfectly happy the Asgardian was absent.

Instead, they were all meeting inside a dreary, secret underground hanger, with May's clipped, "Welcome Avengers. The Director's in the middle of a call with the president, but I'll take you straight to his office so we don't waste any time," to the disappointment of her younger agents and surrogate family.

"Thank you," Captain America said with equal formality, "happy to be here."

"Oh that's it!" Daisy exclaimed. "I'm Daisy Johnson, Agent of SHIELD, along with Fitz," pointing to the happily waving Scottish engineer, "Simmons," the beaming British girl, "Hunter" the man flashed the 'peace' sign, "and Bobbi, who you might already know."

"Ooh, so the two of you are working together again," Natasha smirked at Bobbi and Hunter. "Maybe they'll have to install a daycare here, especially since it's called the _Playground_."

Both elite and hardened operatives blanched, while their younger co-workers were trying to smother some giggles. Bobbi and Hunter would _kill_ them.

"I see you still like to get reactions out of people, Romanoff," May noted, a subtle bite to her tongue in defense of her precious subordinates.

"Sorry," she said without any hint of apology, and then Sif stepped forward.

"I'm glad to see you are still all well. Particularly you, Skye. Or Daisy now," she added with an inquisitive look towards her.

Sobering up, the young woman took a defiant step forward. "It's Daisy now, and yes. I'm fine."

The agents had all clammed up now, and Maria Hill, the last to disembark, simply said, "Let's not keep Director Coulson waiting." With that they all walked off in silence.

For about ten seconds.

It was a minor miracle really, or possibly thanks to inquisitive minds being distracted by the mechanics of the secret underground air craft hanger.

"So how's a nice girl like you get involved with SHIELD?" Tony addressed Daisy. "Recruited as a child? Taken to a nice restaurant after graduating from high school and told you that they would train you to save the world with nothing but handgun and lock pick? Family killed and promised that you could keep others safe?"

"I let them arrest me so that I could infiltrate their ranks to steal information," Daisy breezily answered, hiding how much she was having to maintain a mantra about how she already had a boyfriend. And Stark a girlfriend. "Going great now."

"I'm still trying to understand how exactly I got here," Hunter threw in. "Because frankly, half of it doesn't make sense to me." Bobbi Morse just rolled her eyes at that.

"Don't forget the part where just before you really joined, you shot three of us for your own agenda," May threw in with a smile that made Hunter shiver.

"I said I was sorry!"

"Alright," an apparently unfazed Iron Man remarked, "cool. Glad to know Agent's loosened up."

"It's Director now," Daisy retorted a little more coolly in defense of her father-figure/mentor.

"Whatever."

"Director's this way," May flatly broke, disinterested in the banter and pointing at the relevant door.

 **XXX**

Coulson's Office

"So this is where you were hiding at," Steve's flat tone carrying with them more meaning than any sermon in denouncing the actions of the man standing up from behind his deck.

Director Phil Coulson's usual nonchalant yet unreadable grin was strained enough for everyone to see it, but his voice was level. "For what it's worth, I _am_ sorry. How'd you know, by the way?"

He glanced at the Asgardian.

"I know it wasn't Sif," he assessed, to which she nodded. "I appreciate that, thank you."

The super-soldier shrugged. "We never actually saw the body, just a report and some cards with blood on them," Coulson looked a little affronted at the last part, "and then of course there was when Fury faked his own death because it was convenient. Made me curious."

Now Tony stepped up. "The stuff Widow downloaded from both HYDRA and SHIELD onto the internet wasn't complete. Fury was careful to keep any mention of you off any electronic files because I'd hacked in before, but there were enough hints there for JARVIS to get my attention and between us we put it all together."

Coulson looked at Romanoff, who was giving him a very unimpressed glare. "We had a standing bet on whether Fury would ever fess up, and if so how long it would take."

"Who won?"  
"Classified," Natasha replied in a sing-song voice.

The director nodded at that, accepting he deserved that.

Steve's jaw clenched for a moment, but when he spoke, he sounded calm. "There's a lot we have to talk about. About the Appendix, that is," he clarified, despite a clear desire to interrogate Coulson on both his recent activities and that of the real SHIELD. To know how much they were like what Peggy Carter, Howard Stark, and Colonel Chester Phillips had envisioned, and how much they were like what Zola and HYDRA had twisted their dream into.

"Indeed," Coulson nodded. "We were informed you had found their headquarters, but not what you found there. Of course, the presence of that alien ship is enough to warrant concern."

"You haven't been briefed because we're still trying to think up a spiffy codename for the official report," Tony 'helpfully' explained. "Maybe 'Operation: Defcon Infinity,' or 'Operation: It's Always the Quiet Ones,' or 'Operation: What Kind of Sci-Fi is this?' maybe? What do you guys think?"

"We're dealing with evil duplicates of Phil Coulson and Bruce Banner," Natasha flatly explained. "Due to how they are both older than the individuals in this room, and from comments they made and the resources they possess, we believe they are from an alternate future timeline."

"This is the part where I wait for the punchline," Coulson smoothly said.

"And time travel's impossible," Fitz said with quiet authority.

"You are correct," Sif agreed, "with one single exception in the universe, and we believe that given the information they have demonstrated to already possess, and from what was implied in their words, they achieved it."

Daisy summed it up for them all. "Well, sh—"

"Language!" Tony scolded, while Steve rolled his eyes.

 **XXX**

One quick explanation later.

"Well," Coulson sighed. "Besides needing to change security protocols, _all_ the protocols, what do we do next? Do we have any leads? I assume that's why you came here."

"No, but we're here because we've got to work together on this, including coming up with a plan," Steve sternly said. "SHIELD and the Avengers have been doing a decent job separate from each other, and you haven't done anything to really concern me yet," the agents were all clearly insulted by the qualifier, "but we've got to work together on this. This Robert Banner is too different from the Bruce Banner we know—"

"And love~," Natasha chirped with a smile.

"—and we're hoping you can help us with Phillip."

The Director of SHIELD's composure never faltered, but the insinuation –even if it was actually unintentional— of how closely he resembled a sociopathic, Machiavellian killer, still stung. Coulson chose to be objective for now however, knowing how rattled everyone here was right now.

"It may interest you to know," Vision smoothly interjected, "that according to the computer records I downloaded, your counterpart is unaware of both your survival, and that you are SHIELD's new director."

"How's that possible?" Coulson incredulously asked, taking the tablet the Synthoid handed over, which displayed the falsified report of Coulson's 'death' at Loki's hands, with his status "Killed In Action" clearly displayed.

"It's not too surprising, really. They're supporting a 'survival of the strongest' agenda. Therefore in their minds, the losses you took in the discovery of the truth of HYDRA, how devastating their ruthless tactics were, demonstrated that SHIELD and its methods were weak and thus readily dismissed. Obviously, they expected any survivors to be eliminated."

All of the agents' faces hardened at that. It had been touch and go more often than they wished to think, but that moment was there and gone as they remembered how they had _won_ ; turning HYDRA's 'strengths' against itself. That they had done so _without_ compromising who they were: the shield.

Well, mostly won. There were still cells of those fascists out there, as Vegas had aptly demonstrated, although it was weird how the Appendix had not realized how badly they were being culled, or why.

"It sounds like a case of target fixation," Rogers took up from Vision. "They're so focused on the Avengers and those with powers that they're overlooking everyone else."

"Kinda insulting," Stark muttered, but they all recognized the humour he was trying to project.

"They've even been taking care of groups who were supposed to replace you, like something called the ATCU, because they couldn't influence them enough."

"Yes, we've been looking into that," Coulson nodded. "They were supposed to deal with the recent Inhuman outbreak, but suddenly everyone involved just disappeared. I'm sort of impressed at what _I_ can do, even at that age."

"And while half insane," Daisy helpfully pointed out, before turning her focus on the Avengers. "What about the Inhumans? What's their story there?"

"It appears," said Vision, their resident Appendix dictionary, "that they were hoping for more widespread dispersal of what is called Terrigen. That it would foster more powered individuals to work with. However, they were never aware of the original location of the main Inhuman settlement, and were never able to establish satisfactory contact. Due to their inability to control who gain abilities, or manufacture Inhumans on their own, they chose to focus on the Avengers. It is possible their interference prevented the outbreak from becoming more severe."

"Were they really using Project: Insight?" Bobbi asked.

"Yes," Rogers grimaced. "It was giving them…insight into every leading politician, top military official, and powered individual, including the Avengers, that they could feed it data on. But the program, and its files, were one of the many things that we—Vision, I mean— kept them from escaping with."

"Except for what two scary smart people can still remember," a concerned Fitz interjected.

Everyone shot Bruce and Coulson a look at that. Every single person in the room –except Laura— was very intelligent and dangerous, but they were all _also_ well aware of just how exceptionally brilliant those two men were.

The prospect of going up against men far more ruthless than they was already proving to be an uphill battle.

"But they can't input any new data unless they rebuild the Insight program from scratch," Stark reassured them.

"They've taken a significant defeat," Rogers cautioned. "And yes, a wounded beast is more dangerous, but it's still wounded. Right now, they're bleeding badly, and if we can keep the pressure up, we'll be able to take them down."

 **XXX**

Avenger's Compound

Living Area

There was a palpable tension to the air as the civilians waited for the Avengers and company to come home to the Compound, hopefully proclaiming that they had finally come to a solution that they could all work with.

Jane Foster and Darcy were watching over an emotionally drained Selvig, making sure he was okay after the life-shattering revelation he had just experienced.

He had the secrets of the universe in his skull, and he was honestly afraid to let them out.

Fury and Pepper were sitting at a right-angle to each other, enjoying their comfortable chairs and hot coffee, before Pepper finally asked it: "Did you really mean it?"

The spy master shot her a dry look as he waited for her to clarify.

"About believing in heroes and changing the world."

He sighed, and took another sip of his drink before answering. "Even a ruthless cynic like me wants to live in a happier world. The trick is finding the people who believe in it more than you do, and giving them the tools to do it." Then Fury shrugged, looking away from her, his expressionless. "And if they can't pull it off, finding us another stepping stone towards real, actual peace, then who can?"

Pepper bit her lip for a moment, before nodding and smiling in agreement. "They'll do it. They aren't going to just roll over and give up at this point."

A single chuckle escaped Fury, before he shot her a grin of his own. "No, they're too stubborn for that. Stark and the rest'll find a way, if only to show up the Appendix."

 **XXX**

Elsewhere

"So what're we going to do?" Phillip Coulson asked his companion as they finished off the take-out hamburgers that had served as dinner. They had held off any 'shop talk' while they were on the run, but now they had to prepare for the future. Plus, bullet wounds were a bit of a conversation killer, and the more advanced tech in their special first aid kits did nothing for the pain.

"We can use that old Siberia base of HYDRA's, 'cause I'm pretty confident we didn't make any mention of it in any of the files."

Phillip thought about Robert's point, and decided it was a safe bet. They had both _known_ where it was, and what was there, so they had seen no reason to write anything down about it. Moreover, they had been meaning for a while to go back for a more in-depth examination of what it had to offer. Such as those unstable super-soldiers….

"And there's someone else we can turn to for help," Robert smirked, and a small part of Phillip cringed at the sight of it. For all that he liked and respected Robert, that he was a fellow true believer in their Cause, he knew that there was a dark and dangerous side of him that had made SHIELD and later their fellow resistance fighters increasingly nervous to be around him.

A monster born from years of abuse and having to play passive while dealing with those whose help he needed. Yet then he had been recruited into SHIELD with all of its resources, and had then suffered as everyone else as nightmares consumed the world they knew. First New York was nuked, and then dangerous threats started popping up of nowhere. Thanks to Banner they had started to get the situation under control, until it had climaxed with the arrival of Thanos. Nevertheless, in those dark days Banner had increasingly found himself being the one with the power; the ability to dictate people's lives. And he had been too essential for anyone to do anything as he began to relish his new position with a vindictive satisfaction.

Only Natasha had managed to keep that side in check. First under orders, and later because of what Phillip believed to be genuine affection. After her death, however, it had fallen to Phillip to keep Banner in line, and while he had been successful, he knew that it had become increasing difficult for Robert to control all that pain and anger, and desire to _hurt_ as he had been hurt. It was all that both of them could do to keep it firmly directed towards something productive.

And then there was that second pod they had brought with them…

 _So long as he keeps it focused on destroying Thanos, it'll all work out_ , Phillip reminded himself. _Still, whatever he's thinking of now, it's going to be another doozie_.

"Who?"

"Someone we know who's also a master of getting justice, and is already working on his own plan," Robert's eyes twinkled, before elaborating. "Where'd you say Zemo was again?"

 **XXX**

Secret SHIELD Headquarters

The Playground

Coulson's Office

"That won't work," Natasha bluntly told them all.

They all turned their attention on her, and she elaborated. "The Appendix is too dangerous and adaptable for us to pull it off alone, even with SHIELD. And they know how we operate too well. If we're going to take them down, we're going to need a global manhunt. We're going to need help from everyone."

"We're not exactly on good terms with the governments right now," Steve grimly pointed out. "Especially with the issue of Registration looming."  
"Exactly," she smiled, and they realized this was what she had been leading them towards.

With a quick flick of the super-spy's finger, her wrist computer was projecting holograms of public debates and angry crowds holding signs that either condemned or supported the Avengers and their actions.

"As nice as it sounds for all of us to plan about shaking hands and dealing with this threat, the fact is that the Appendix has muddied the waters to the point that even if we remove them from the board," more than one person's face set with murderous intent at that, "we're still left with the question of how we are to handle the issue of powered individuals, be they hero, vigilante, or other. We _need_ to come up with something we can all agree on if we're to deal with the greater threats out there."

"So what, we're making the decision for the whole world?" Tony snapped. "The what, seventeen of us?" He shot baby Laura a placating gesture. "Sorry, eighteen."

Steve nodded grimly. "We can't solve this in secret. That'll just blow up in our face down the road."

Pointedly rolling her eyes, Natasha gestured around them. "We have all of the Avengers here, and whatever the final decision about the Sokovian Accords is, has to be something we can _all_ live with. And here with SHIELD we've got those who've been neck deep in addressing those who have powers and use them to either hurt or protect others. Better to handle this now then later."

She saw their hesitation, and did nothing to mask her irritation. "Look," she snapped. "We're heroes, right? But what does that word _mean_ to us?"

"We protect people, and do what we can to make a better world," Steve said without missing a beat.

"Dealing with the threats they can't handle," Tony added.

The others nodded and smiled in agreement with their two spokesmen.

"Exactly," Natasha grinned in turn. "We're doing this for everyone, and we owe it to them to figure this out at last. And right now, they're all waiting for us to help them answer what being a hero really means, not just in comic books."

"We have the eyes of the world on us," Bruce agreed, feeling a bit uneasy. "The Avengers run towards wherever there is death and chaos, because sometimes that is the only way everyone can enjoy some peace and sanity. But right now, we've got to solve this without violence, and figure this all out. That's your job, and you can't let them down."

" _Our_ job, Bruce," Natasha softly said, as she put a hand on her husband's shoulder.

He looked like he was about to argue, but Vision spoke up first. "If the Hulk just disappears, those who want greater control over us would argue that we are too irresponsible. The authorities could use such an event to paint Banner as a weapon that we had failed to monitor and control, like a nuclear bomb. And given that we failed to do so, might suggest that _they_ could keep the world safer, with more regulations, than we could."

"The Hulk is no longer a monster," Steve agreed. "You can't make us agree with you on that, not after what we've seen. He's powerful, dangerous, but unfortunately so is any man with a gun. Since he's been with the Avengers, he's _saved_ lives."

"Including mine," Tony deadpanned with a little wave.

"Johannesburg, in Africa."

Bruce whirled around to face the speaker, Wanda, who was clearly bracing herself as she brought up that taboo topic. The Avengers— _all_ the Avengers—had forgiven her after seeing her stride towards redemption, but they had not forgotten. Still, even before the force of the look Bruce was giving her, she said her piece. "I made the Hulk go on a rampage, but I could've done that to any of you instead of only turning your fears against you. It could have been Thor or Iron Man tearing up that city…and it would have been the Hulk that would have stopped them. Protected them. That's what he and you would've done."

"Our own behavioural analysists agree," Coulson spoke up. "And if you made everything public about the Hulk, including all the ways to calm him down, then that should ease further concerns."

"We can't let our fears of the future define us," Natasha gently said.

"…No, you're right," Bruce agreed after a long moment. "Not like _them_ ," referring to the Appendix.

Steve took a deep breath, and turned to Tony. "Alright, if we're going to be registering to work with the UN or various governments, then we've got to make sure that those with powers won't be abused by this." He gestured at Bruce. "If we're making the Hulk public, we might as well go for full transparency. Everything about the Avengers, their missions, their orders, everything, is available for the world to see."

"Some missions need operational security though," Agent May pointed out.

"We can't let this be in the dark," Steve disagreed.

"So we put a limit on how long it can be classified," Sam offered. "Say, a week? To the hour?"

"That would be 168 hours," Vision calmly said. "Although the exact number can be discussed later. What I do need to point out is neither issue has been covered in the proposed version of the Sokovia Accords."

"So we bring out a counter-proposal, and make it viral," Tony mused, glad that they were making progress. Besides, it was always fun making some politicians miserable in a way they could not protest. "Call it…the New York Accords."

"When we first got together," Steve smiled.

"And when World Council fired a nuke at the city," Natasha mused, tapping her chin with a little grin. " _That'll_ ruffle some feathers."

"And I took the nuke through the wormhole," Tony smirked. "We're keeping the name, or I'm out."

"Can you make it super easy to understand, so it's easy to read through? Please," Hunter eagerly asked. "Coulson made us go through the Sokovian one, and it is _dense_."

"But you have finished it, right?" Bobbi sternly asked.

"Mostly."

"Short and sweet is the way to go," Daisy smiled.

" _So_ ," Tony said, taking back the flow of the conversation. "What, we want full transparency, and outright guarantee of the rights of those with powers?"

"Humans only, or are you going to broaden the term?" Sif queried with a raised eyebrow.

"Indeed," Vision said, mimicking the gesture.

Steve came up with a quick solution. "Diplomatic immunity for Asgardians and other aliens we're on good terms with, so you aren't legally bound by our laws. If those privileges are abused, you are to be evicted, and of course if the non-Earthlings resist this, then those involved are free to warrant self-defense, and even arrest them for deportation."

Sif gave him a thoughtful look as he continued.

"It'll placate the politicians, while hopefully granting such formal status as will satisfy Odin. It's not as if we've had any real trouble from Asgard."

"No, you have not," Sif smiled in agreement. "I presume then that we also ask that other aliens will be bound by the same laws as humans?"

Steve nodded in agreement, and then turned to look at Vision. "Yes, all aliens or sentient non-humans will be treated the same. Equal rights _and_ responsibilities."

"Sounds fair," The synthoid smiled.

"So we just go up to the White House and slam this proclamation down in front of a bunch of fat suits?" Tony lightly asked, but everyone could see a glint in his eyes signifying a trap.  
But Steve only gave a knowing smile. "No, because that's not how you settle issues of liberties. We call a conference with every news media there is, and follow it up with interviews on every TV news station, letters to the newspapers, whatever it takes.

"And the whole time we make it perfectly clear that this is only what we are asking of the public. That we are asking them to respect about those with powers. _Ask_ them to support us in this.

"If people have powers and break the laws, fine, they go to jail. If they just want to be left alone, they get left alone. If they want to be an Avenger, we'll see what they've got. And we make clear we won't be working for the US government or anyone, but _with_ the United Nations. For all people."

Slowly but surely as they considered it, all the Avengers seemed to be finding themselves in consensus.

"Theoretically, we'll have access to intelligence agencies around the planet if we do this," Natasha mused, with Tony throwing in "Funding!" with a knowing look, but she only nodded before turning to Coulson. "That'll be a big help hunting down the Appendix, but what about SHIELD?"

"If you try to exonerate us, you might get burned," Coulson warned. "Right now our new relationship with the US government is very… _loose_. They don't acknowledge that we exist, but also don't deny any of the good we do. They don't give us any support, but they also don't try to impede our work. But given how our public disgrace over HYDRA is still fresh in everyone's minds, if you try to make us a part of this, it could ruin the New York Accords."

"We'll cross that bridge when we get to it," the ex-Agent of SHIELD simply said.

"So which first?" Sam asked. "The Accords? Or the Appendix?"

"SHIELD will keep hunting for them," Coulson promised. "You focus on settling Registration, at least get the ball going as fast as you can, so you can get the support you need to find them and stop them from causing another Battle of Las Vegas."

"Psychological screening will be important too," May added, with Daisy nodding in agreement.

All the Avengers besides Sam and Bruce looked affronted by that, with the counselor chipping in his own two cents. "Come on guys, none of you are exactly 'normal.'"

Rhodes looked offended at that, but none of the others argued.

"And that's going to be the same with anyone else who gets powers. But the point here isn't to help any of us reintegrate with the rest of society, but to make sure we're handling the stress of everything associated with this lifestyle in a healthy manner, and that you're being an Avenger for the right reasons." Reluctantly, the rest of the heroes indicated their consent, while the SHIELD agents just nodded; they had mandatory mental assessments for those with powers as it was.

"There are some issues that the governments, and the United Nations, will insist upon," Vision warned. "Such as the identities of everyone with powers, and what they can do."

"We can work that out," Steve reasoned. "Ask that the names of those who want to keep quiet are only known to the very top in the UN. And there's got to be a way to keep it anonymous while seeing whatever psychiatrists they have."

They all waited to see if anyone else had anything to say.

"Alright then," Steve breathed out. "So, we put down our version of the Accords, based upon what we've agreed here, and we go public with it. Ask the people to support us in making this the new form of legislation for those with abilities above those of normal humans, to protect the rights and freedoms of _everybody_. Any objections?"

Reading the mood as she saw there were none, Natasha stretched out her fist into the middle of the group. Bruce mimicked her, and one by one the rest of the Avengers followed suit, with Steve smiling and gesturing for the Agents of SHIELD to join in too.

They had a plan, and they would see it through.

Together.

 **XXX**

Elsewhere

Later that day

"You're a hard man to find, Helmut Zemo."

With deliberate casualness, the Sokovian turned around, hoping to hide how he was covertly reaching for a gun.

It was an older man, past middle age and balding, wearing a nonchalant, easy grin that could make one overlook the cold calculation in his eyes. If Zemo were given to melodrama, he might even have said 'darkness.' "Well, hard for others I admit," the stranger continued. "Although I'm just glad we happened to land nearby before my partner even thought of contacting you."

"Can I help you," Zemo finally managed.

"Yes, and in turn I believe I can offer you the opportunity of the lifetime. Vengeance against the Avengers, guaranteed."

The barrel of Zemo's gun rose level to the stranger's eyes. "Keep talking."

 **XXX**

Avenger's Quinjet

"You know this'll all probably go down in flames, right?" Tony drawled as they flew home. "I mean, there are so many ways this can go wrong."

In the cockpit, Natasha made a few adjustments as she piloted them away, letting Bruce speak up first. "Of course there are, Tony," her husband said. "But we aren't going to stumble across a magically perfect solution either. Being open about what we want, what we need, and showing that we are willing to compromise about it, is the best way to handle this."

"It's up to us to make sure that it works," Vision agreed, before gesturing at Steve, Wanda, Sif, Sam, and Rhodes. "We should probably take a few days, however, to work out what we'll be saying."

"Definitely," Steve agreed, remembering his own experience back when he had first become Captain America. "The first speech will have to be just right, but for the interviews we don't want to seem like we've been rehearsing whatever we say. We should still go over any possible questions we'll be asked."

"We must not give the impression that we are afraid," Wanda levelly said. "How we react to this will make all of the difference."

Laura's face started to crinkle up, and Natasha decided that she had had enough of long, long, looooong talks about ethics, legality, and general standards of behaviour.

"You'll figure it out," she warned, turning around to stare at Steve and Tony, tinting her tone and expression so that they would be unable to tell if she was joking or not. "Because if you two don't figure it out, and start acting like idiots again, then you lose all visitation rights with Laura."

Both men froze, and with the sudden dimming in tension levels, Laura smiled and clapped her hands.

"Alright, no problem," Tony quickly assured the mother.

"We'll make sure it works," Steve promised.

"Good."

Bruce leaned over to whisper to Wanda, "And they say that _I'm_ the one who's whipped."

"Oh you are," Sam leaned forward to say. "But she's too resourceful to stop there."

Felling a bit uncomfortable, Steve coughed into his fist. "Right. So…where do we start first?"

" _Now,_ " Natasha emphasized as she brought them down to land on a conveniently empty field, "Bruce and I drop you off to go have some alone time."

"Uhm, what?"

"I was serious about Bruce, Laura and I taking the quinjet to go on our honeymoon. We'll let you off here."

 **XXX**

Former KGB/HYDRA Siberia base.

Now new Appendix HQ

A few days later

"Y'know, after I spent so much time and effort trying to find this place, this is almost anti-climactic," ex-colonel Helmut Zemo said conversationally. Beneath this blandness however, he was trying to hide his anticipation at finally locating what he had sought for so long while the supposed time traveler guided him.

Apparently, there had originally been four of them, but complications from their injuries had killed two of them before they could return to Earth.

"Sorry about the conditions," Phillip apologized as he led the man through the dirty and cold cement corridors. "Maybe after we're done talking you can help me with getting the heating system up and running again."

After a few more minutes they had arrived in a large room filled with vertical tanks with human torsos clearly visible. An ominous metal chair, computer screens, and more, made the room chilly in a manner unrelated to the weather.

"The other Winter Soldiers," Zemo stated.

"Yes. Mind if I ask what you were planning to do when you found them?" Phillip asked, deliberately saying 'when' to help bolster the man's ego to make him more willing to talk. Sadly, his partner disrupted this.

"Any trouble convincing him?" Robert called out as he walked into the room from the other side. Zemo tensed, but Phil had warned him about his partner's appearance, and did nothing violent.

"So it's really true," Zemo murmured after staring at the approaching Robert for a few seconds. Or rather, a visibly older version of Bruce Banner approached, which certainly added credibility to their story of being time travelers, along with other details Phillip had told him.

He had been particularly skeptical when Phillip had claimed they could _not_ time travel again to prove their words, saying the most crucial item for it was too heavily guarded, and that far too much fortune had been involved last time.

While the odds of reappearing in empty space were significantly higher than doing so within the middle of a planet or sun, it was still a blind jump. Even worse, without the help of someone named Selvig, there was a 50% chance of being off timewise by a decade or two, either forward or backwards in time. (Although Zemo was concerned about how the fact that abducting this Selvig in the present had apparently never occurred to these men).

Still, there had been enough proof to make Zemo willing to entertain the existence of time travel.

"Yes," Phillip assured him again. "Now, you were saying?"

"Hmm? Oh, I'd have shot them while they were still sleeping. The world doesn't need any more super-soldiers. The ones we've already got have caused enough harm."

Phillip and Robert only casually smiled, well aware that the Avengers had given more to this world than they had taken away. Moreover, without them, and other powered beings, they would never be able to kill Thanos. Still, it was useful to know how Zemo's delusions worked so they could work them to their advantage.

"The super-soldiers are best disposed of," Robert agreed. "Trying to control them where HYDRA failed, despite all of their own brainwashing technology, is just asking for trouble. Besides, we've got something better," pointing reverently towards two large black rectangles, giving off hints of steam.

"You'd better make one last check of those Winter Soldiers before we get rid of them," Phillip broke in, making Zemo's inexplicably wary. "Just to be sure there's nothing to gain from them. Then we can get started."

Grunting in annoyance, but conceding the necessity, Robert headed off, muttering something about 'genius' and 'five minutes.' Phillip gave Zemo a knowing look before glancing at the metal…storage vessels? Coffins?

They were each about three meters long, and a meter tall and wide, made of what appeared to be some black metal.

Concealing any trepidation, Zemo accepted the invitation to walk over to the far side of the room to examine them, conscious of the older man still standing behind him.

 _Some sort of way to preserve them? Cryo-something or other?_ He wondered as he finally reached the closest one, feeling the chilly waves it gave off. There was a patch of frost on top, which he rubbed off to reveal a window, which showed the upper torso of… _What is that? Did they create it?_

Mentally shrugging, he went to the next, and all his professionalism could not restrain the sick revulsion he felt.

 _This is why Coulson didn't want Banner around! But, but,_ why _?_ How _? How could they do this!?_

 _And what kind of men have I thrown myself in with?_ he thought with no small trace of fear.

 **XXX**

New York

Abandoned Warehouse

The team had all already assembled by the time their leaders arrived.

It had been hard for the married couple to meet with them in the past without arousing suspicions from the Avengers, SHIELD, or other parties, but they had finally come up with a workable system to come together.

Spider-Man, young but powerful with the heart of a warrior, a mind of a scientist, and the soul of a humanitarian.

Ant-Man, ex-convict aiming to help the 'little guy,' and an unflinching moral code that would surprise people.

Wasp, like her boyfriend, proof that size matters not, prepared to defend the world from that which it was not yet ready for.

Originally Bruce and Natasha had recruited them, approaching them all even before the landing of the comet in Africa or the Battle of Las Vegas, with the intent of having them help prevent a war amongst the heroes, by force if necessary.

Now they were to be repurposed into something else.

"I still say we should call ourselves Insects United," Peter Parker told them all enthusiastically.

"I have no idea if you're joking or not, and even if you aren't, that's a terrible name," Scott deadpanned, wearing his special uniform, but at regular size. "Good effort though. But what we _should_ be concerned about is having our own theme song."

"No," Hope flatly stated, slightly annoyed that her helmet and eye goggles made it harder for her to glare.

"Awwww," Spider-Man said with a mock whine, hunching over as if he were sulking. Then he straightened up. "Hey boss, hey boss," he repeated.

Ant-Man and Wasp did not come to attention, but did wave in cheerful greeting as Bruce and Natasha came up, each holding one of Laura's hands as she slowly walked forward.

"Alright," Natasha declared, taking charge, "we've got a lot to talk about, so get comfortable."

Spider-Man leapt up so he was casually resting with his back stuck to side of a support pillar, while Ant-Man and Wasp settled down on crates they dusted off to serve as seats.

 **XXX**

An hour later

"Is it wrong that I feel psyched up?" Spider-Man managed.

"Yes," Wasp snapped while Ant-Man went "No." She glared at her boyfriend who held up his hands in surrender, while Bruce diplomatically said, "It is scientifically fascinating, and shows how incredible our world is becoming."

Catching on that the married couple were still upset about this situation, Spider-Man clamped up.

"So that's why you called us here then?" Ant-Man asked. "To join up with the Avengers directly now that we don't have to worry about them getting out of hand?" He cracked his knuckles. "I admit, I want to get a shot in with this Appendix too."

"No," Natasha said, and then went silent to let them figure it out.

"I'm dead," Spider-Man finally said, making Ant-Man and Wasp look at him in surprise, but Bruce and Natasha understood. "What I mean is," the young hero elaborated, "in the Appendix's timeline, I was already dead. I live in New York, and by the sound of it, it was probably all trashed by the alien invasion."

"And they never really encountered Ant-Man and I either," Wasp realized. "They might know about us—"

"I wasn't very subtle, swinging around before," Spider-Man butted in a little sheepishly.

"—or have some hints from the future," she continued, "but not enough for them to make solid plans for us. That's why they've been focused on the Avengers, and we haven't had any trouble from them directly."

"Depending on how that insanity's working, it's also possible they _can't_ focus on us," Ant-Man mused aloud.

"That's a possibility," Natasha allowed, "but we can't count on it."

"So we're now your little trump card against the Appendix," Scott grumbled, but they could all tell his heart was not in it.

"I always liked to carry a small gun hidden on me," the Black Widow grinned. Then it bloomed into a smile that was warm, friendly, and more importantly one that they realized was for the first time 100% _honest_. "Bruce and I first recruited you because we could tell you're as determined, skilled, resourceful, and most importantly having the same moral courage as any other Avenger.

"When the Appendix finally makes their move," she continued, "you'll be our little surprise they won't see coming. And when this is all over, we'll be honoured to introduce you to Steve and the others." Not as eloquent as his wife, Bruce nodded in agreement.

There was a moment of silence, then, "Well I'm in."

"Me too."

"Me three."

Brimming with confidence and conviction, Ant-Man and Wasp stood, and Spider-Man leapt down to stand tall beside them.

As one they each held out a hand, and Natasha and Bruce obliged with their free hands so that they all met in a circle, showing their commitment.

A small tug distracted the Romanoff-Banner's, and they looked down to see that Laura had let go of her parents, and with a face like a cherub was stretching up with both hands to meet the rest of them.

"Our children deserve a world where they are free and happy," Natasha said with pride. "As do we all, and we will fight with everything we have to ensure it."

And the rest of the adults rumbled in agreement.

 **XXX**

 **Author Notes:  
I am honestly curious as to what you guys think of my solution for the heroes when dealing with a hero registration crisis. **

**-0-**

 **Recommend fics:**

 **"** **Yes to the Dress** **"** **by Qoheleth**

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 **Next Chapter: 'Daggers in the Night'**

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 **Please Review, and I will get back to you!**


	33. Daggers in the Night

For better or worse, Marvel owns all of this stuff, not me.

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Many thanks to my wonderful Betas, Jesuslovesmarina and Bobbie23! Also lots of thanks to Life Dealer for helping me with the brainstorming! Be sure to check out their stories as well!

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Chapter 33: Daggers in the Night

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 _Previously: While on the run, Bucky Barnes, managed to overcome most of his Winter Soldier programming on his own, and then turned himself in to the Avengers and SHIELD. With him in voluntary custody, SHIELD has been working to ensure he is completely clear of any of HYDRA's brainwashing. In the meantime, Steve and Sam have been bringing him up to date on the modern world, even taking him on supervised outings._

 _The Avengers and SHIELD worked out an agreement to address the Sokovian Accords in a way that they were all in agreement with: the New York Accords, a document intended to publicly petition for the global population to support them in their rights. Afterward, Bruce and Natasha contacted the secret team they had formed earlier as a contingency against the Appendix. At their first real meeting, they brought Spider-Man, Wasp, and Ant-Man up to date on the plan._

 _Unbeknownst to the heroes, Robert Banner (otherwise known as Bruce Banner) and Phillip Coulson (otherwise known as Phil Coulson) of the Appendix has joined with Helmut Zemo in the old HYDRA/KGB base in Siberia…_

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" _When there is no enemy within, the enemies outside cannot hurt you_."  
― Winston S. Churchill

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Avenger's Headquarters

Living Room

"Oh, you're back!" Wanda smiled as she looked up from her book while reclining on the couch.

"Just got in," Bruce smiled as he glanced at the title. "What're you reading? Huh, ancient Polynesian navigation?"

"Yes," she beamed. "I watched that _Moana_ film and got curious about the Wayfinders. It really is pretty awesome."  
"Yeah, we've got to watch that movie ourselves," Bruce ruefully confessed, before heavily sitting down in a chair facing her, clearly uneasy but determined to go through with whatever he was here for.

Wanda stayed where she was, bookmarked her page, and put her reading material away.

The two stared at each other in silence for half a minute, before she conceded she would never be able to outlast him. "So, what's up?"

Bruce sighed, pulled out a strange-looking electric gizmo from his pocket, and inspected it. "Natasha's keeping Steve, Vision, and the rest busy," he began, "and this," gesturing with the device, "just confirmed that no one's listening in. Based upon what Vision downloaded from the Appendix's own tech even."

"Well, _that's_ not ominous," she quipped.

He gave her a rueful smile. "Yeah, sorry." Bruce took a deep breath, and tried again. "I want to talk to you about the Appendix, and Robert, in particular."

Wanda's eyes darkened in memory, and she looked away from Bruce for a moment before forcing herself to meet his gaze again. "You're not him, and by this point I don't think you'll ever be," she reassured him.  
The scientist's face was carefully neutral, but Wanda strongly suspected it was far less of an effort for him to keep his darker emotions away than it would have a year ago. Before his relationship with Natasha had gone anywhere. Before they had met their daughter, and the light she had brought into their lives. "You really think so?"  
She shrugged. "Explaining why is more of your wife's department than mine, but…" Wanda paused in thought, before giving a knowing nod. "I think _he's_ beyond any second chances, just from me to you."

 **XXX**

[Flashback]

 _"_ _No excuses," Natasha coldly hissed. "They're still too dangerous to live." Her husband was silent, but there was a dangerous look in his eyes._

 **XXX**

Present

In their minds, both Bruce and Natasha had been given second chances, and more.

They had done their best to live up to this gift, but where did they draw the line for others?

With visible difficulty, Wanda tried to express how she felt. "To give someone a second chance…they've got to want it, to accept that they've done something wrong. But Robert… I don't know if he can. Because that would mean accepting that he's wrong, and I think that the belief that he's making a better future is the only thing keeping him going. He's got nothing else left in life he cares about. Not even Laura, his own flesh and blood."

"My daughter," Bruce growled, and despite herself she flinched at the possessive tone there. "Yes," she merely said. "Your daughter. Robert might harbor some sentiment for her, but at the end of the day, it's not enough to make a difference. He's a fanatic who has spent years making himself that way. Someone of his intellect—he could have changed the world for the better, but instead he chose to keep himself bottled up on an alien ship, and play the puppet master, dictating how the world should be."

She stopped in thought, before admitting to herself what was necessary. "He could have easily contributed to making the world significantly more prosperous and peaceful, but his brilliance is what makes him so dangerous. Trying to take him in alive would very easily backfire and get people killed, and even if we did, we'd never be able to trust him. He'd be a viper nestled against our chests. Just like that HYDRA scientist Steve mentioned from the War."

"Arnim Zola," Bruce automatically supplied, his mind clearly elsewhere. Finally, with a soulful sigh he nodded. "Thank you, you're right. I…I had to be sure it wasn't just my anger talking to me. Even if I _understand_ him better now, what he's done to me defines me so much that I can never _forget_. And for all that I might want to learn how to _forgive_ , for the sake of being a good example to Laura if nothing else, I can't help but accept that we can't risk giving him a second chance.

"For Robert and Phillip, it's a life sentence in solitary confinement or execution. And we could only sentence them if we could be sure we could bring them in safely."

"Thank you," Bruce softly added.

"You're welcome," Wanda returned.

Taking another fortifying breath, Bruce added. "To tell you the truth, and Tony's figured this out already, and probably Steve, and maybe you too now that I think about it, but you deserve to hear it directly regardless, but…" he cut himself off as he realized he was rambling, and tried again. "Natasha and I figured out that we were going to have an issue over Registration a while back; that the Avengers would be split."

Wanda's face was expressionless, but she nodded at him to keep going.

"So we started to plan to figure out a way to try and keep our family together. We even used Laura, the little niece everyone loved, to help sell it." To his credit, he seemed a little ashamed of that.

Taking a deep breath, he went on.

"One of the things we started doing was forming our own secret team; one that would, if necessary, forcefully stop any fighting between the Avengers. We started it just after our first wedding really. The second wedding, when we invited everyone, was another event to bond us together."

The Scarlet Witch stilled at these revelations, before realizing the trust Bruce was showing her. Perhaps what had happened with Ultron was truly behind them.

Once upon a time she may have sensed an inkling of their thoughts. But during her training sessions, she had gained self-control to prevent accidental slips of that kind, and never violated their privacy without good cause. As a fellow Avenger, she did so out of respect (along with a dash of fear in the beginning of being discovered), and a need to prove herself trustworthy to them. A trust that had now been repaid.

"Thank you," she whispered. "And, what is this little team of yours going to do now?"

"They're called Spider-Man, Ant-Man, and Wasp." His and Wanda's mutual experience in the superhero field, and the seriousness of situation, kept them from commenting on their names. "We're keeping them as a little contingency against the Appendix, since we're sure they don't know anything about them. Or at the very least nothing like they know us. If anything happens to Natasha or I," and now Bruce's gaze was firm and with conviction, "then we want you to lead them."

She gave a slight sound, but Bruce explained. "Clint trusts you explicitly." Frankly, the archer would have been their first choice, per his relationship with Natasha. "But during all of this, you remained one of the most levelheaded. Whatever might happen, more than any of us, you'll never lose sight of those people who rights and freedoms we've sworn to protect. The ones whose safety motivated us into becoming heroes. But too many of us let ourselves get caught up in all these issues of vigilantism and our own rights and freedoms. We were in danger of forgetting why we first chose to do this.

"More than the rest of us, you remained true to being an Avenger."

He took a deep breath. "I know it's a lot to ask of you, and you don't even know these three, but you don't have to decide right now. It might not even become an issue if we get lucky with the Appendix and take them out soon," unlikely, they both knew, "and once the threat is taken care of, our team will probably be lining up to join the Avengers. Just…take your time and let us know what you want. And feel to ask us any questions. We'll answer any you have."

"I will," she promised. It was vague, open to interpretation, but he could see the conviction and emotions in her eyes and knew he and Natasha had made the right choice. They said nothing more for a few minutes as Wanda stared off into space in thought, and Bruce got up to leave her in peace.

The future was in motion, and no one could honestly say what it would hold.

 **XXX**

Avenger's Headquarters

Garden

Lady Sif, known to the ancient humans as the Goddess of War, grabbed one Steve Rogers by the collar with one hand, hefted him in the air so that they were face-to-face, and used her other hand on his head to bring him in for the fiercest kiss she could give.

To their mutual surprise and appreciation, he returned it.

Fun fact: lungs enhanced beyond the human norm can hold a kiss for over a minute, his own arms returning the embrace, while she released his head to press her palm against his back. Finally, though, even Captain America had to concede defeat as he came up for air. Sucking in a deep breath, he gave her an embarrassed grin. "When you said you wanted to discuss team relationships and maneuvers…" he trailed off awkwardly.

"Yes," Sif smirked. "I remembered that being subtle never really suited me." In fact, the only reason she had been so discrete back when she had developed a crush on Thor (when he had matured), was because she knew she had to tread delicately while he was pining for a mortal.

"Wait, you've been flirting with me?"  
"For the last two weeks," Sif smirked. "Although it may have been longer and I only just realized it."

Her face sobered, as she elaborated. "You've been a good friend to me since I arrived, helping me fit in here and understanding of my own cultural differences. More importantly, you're a man of honor, and true to your convictions. And," she looked a bit shameful now, "I was able to confirm that you would live a lifespan far longer than most mortals."

"Was that really a concern?" Steve quietly asked.

"It…was. To an extent. Historically, such relationships have always ended in sorrow for the Asgardian involved. Not only do we have far greater lifespans, but the day-to-day perils of this universe harm us less too. But, I decided I was willing to see if I would be happy loving you, no matter what might happen in our lives."

"You think you love me?" Steve queried, feeling concerned now.

"Oh no," she assured him, and he strangely found himself relaxing slightly. It had not been all that long since they had first met after all, and for all of his idealism, Steve was not one to believe in love at first sight. Even with Peggy, while there had been sparks, they had both been aware that it had been the time they had spent getting to know each other that had made the differences, learning who they were at their best and worst (such as Peggy shooting at him in what he now recognized as romantic jealousy).

"But I'm willing to find out," Sif finished, and Steve matched her smile. He leant forward to kiss her again when he paused and looked around suspiciously. "Natasha! If you're watching, bug off. We want some privacy!"

"I'm sorry," Vision apologized as he came out from the ground, "but it's just me she sent. Mrs. Romanoff-Banner said she had more important things to do then see if you've, and I quote, 'gotten your act together'." He did not appear offended by the implication that he himself did not have any greater concerns than being her a peeping tom on her behalf.

However, upon spotting the glare Sif was giving him, the Synthoid decided choose the better part of valor and make a hasty retreat.

After all, he had no inclination to discover exactly _how_ durable he was.

Vision's only regret was that he had lost the betting pool. He had been so confident from his studies in human behavior and observations that JARVIS had made that Rogers would get together with Tony. Although he admitted he was unsure of how Pepper would feel about that. Either uproarious laughter while choking out comments about Tony's playboy years, or take all of her ex(?)-boyfriend's alcohol for herself.

 **XXX**

Former KGB/HYDRA Siberia base.

Now new Appendix HQ

With the other Winter Soldiers safely disposed of, the three men had retired to a room with a portable heater and hot chocolate.

As they walked, this time Zemo took note of how Robert walked with the slightest limp.

Phillip and Robert gave him a quick rundown on what they had already accomplished, as well as their ongoing goals, with an emphasis on the destruction that Thanos would commit. They also provided several anecdotes upon the 'other' Zemo from their (defunct) future, and how his vengeful drive had been of great service to the resistance against the Mad Titan. The Sokovian was clearly unimpressed, but had shown a clear enthusiasm for fermenting conflict amongst the Avengers so as to pressure international military development to better prepare themselves for the oncoming invasion.

The few suggestions Zemo had given during this (doubtless to help reinforce that it was beneficial for him to be present) were as insightful as the two older men remembered from 'their' Zemo. Given what had happened to this version of Sokovia, they knew this brilliant tactician and strategist had been concocting some secret schemes of revenge. The time travelers were more confident than ever that his pre-existing plans against the Avengers could be adapted to instead pressure the 'heroes' into developing the strength of will to do what must be done, while also making them more powerful so that they could face Thanos and triumph. Zemo merely needed the proper incentive.

Finally, they finished off with how the duo had been forced to flee from the Avengers upon discovery, and finally confirmed for Zemo why they had turned to him for help: they needed the same strategic brilliance that his counterpart displayed.

Stalling for time as he thought, Zemo gestured around the barren room deep within the Siberian complex. "Why didn't you set up here from the start?" he asked.

"Unlike our previous base, this one's only hidden from human eyes," the former SHIELD agent explained. "Asgard's got somebody named Heimdall, whose powers would let him find it if he wanted to. Given the stuff we're up to, we figured eventually Thor, or Sif for that matter, would put their pride aside and ask him."

Confused at the lack of detail in their argument, Zemo pressed further. "But then why did they struggle so to find that scepter that Loki held?"

Zemo's research had revealed that the mysterious item had been specifically sought by the Avengers, making it an object of interest to him; if only to possibly learn how to use something they so desired as a tool against them.

"That belonged to Loki," Coulson explained, unfazed about talking about someone who had killed 'himself' in this timeline. "He enchanted it with his powers so that Heimdall could not find it. Worked like a charm."

"And the Avengers? They accessed your computers after all."

"We were the only ones who knew about this place, so we never bothered putting it into any of the computers they hacked. Barnes has been here before, but given the state of his mind and the trauma he has endured, he'll need something to remind him about it." Phillip paused and conceded. "Or so we assume."

Zemo's eyes glittered, but he kept silent, inviting the others to list more of their available resources. The older men did, although they were clearly still withholding details.

Neither said anything about the two cryo-tubes that they had evidently brought with them, and Zemo felt absolutely no desire to pressure them.

"So," Philip said once a moment of silence had started to stretch too long. "Any specific ideas so far?"

"I understand what you're working towards," Zemo nodded. "And yes, I can see why you think it will be beneficial for the Avengers to fight amongst each other, so long as we can keep it channeled, in order to make them stronger for when Thanos arrives." He gave a sad smile. "Otherwise, far more wives and daughters will die."  
Truthfully, Zemo had concluded that both men were missing some important marbles, and frankly the world could burn or writhe under Thanos' boot for all he cared, so long as the Avengers also suffered.

Alright, no, he still had a bit of a conscience. _First the Avengers, and if I'm still alive I'll see what I can do to help with Thanos._

"But first," raising an inquiring finger, "why not make more Hulks? Those hulklings I mean."

"They're too mindless as anything other than berserkers," Robert lectured. "Even the original Hulk. No, for this we need something actually subtle. Next."

Zemo nodded, having suspected there was some sort of flaw, but wanting to be sure.

"Well, I believe there's a tool you've overlooked in this."

"Would that be the child?" Robert coolly asked. "We know you've been researching my naïve self and his wife." The man was hardly interested in targeting Natasha's daughter without good reason. She may share his DNA too, but he was willing to sacrifice her if the mission called for it.

"No, I've put that aside now," Zemo lied, before smiling like a shark. "There's another far more useful tool we can use.

"James Buchanan Barnes."

"The first and last remaining Winter Soldier," Dr. Robert Banner said with some interest.

"Yes." Zemo pulled a red book from his jacket. "This is what HYDRA used to activate his brainwashing when he was being presented as just a part of the KGB."

He offered it over, and Philip looked through it, giving a quick check for authenticity. They had not encountered it in their own timeline, and they had come back after it had been made, but they were familiar enough with HYDRA to verify its origins and purpose. "Alright, but how does this help us? They might even have deprogrammed him already." He turned to look at Robert. "Do the Avengers have the ability to do so in this time period?"

Robert pursed his lips in thought, before a maniac glint grew in his eyes. "I don't know, but I bet we could reverse whatever they've done to fix him. Even better, I bet we can twist it so that they think he's always been HYDRA!"

Phillip stilled, but against his better judgment Zemo leaned forward in interest. "What do you mean?" the Sokovian asked.

"We make it look like Barnes has been a double-agent on behalf of HYDRA since World War Two!" Robert exclaimed.

"We fake documents that he defected while captured by the Red Skull and Arnim Zola, and willingly carried out all of those assassinations as the Winter Soldier," the scientist continued with growing animation. "From what I remember of the reports when SHIELD fell, the only words in his defense were Steven Roger's with no other witnesses. So, we manufacture evidence and plant them on one of the remaining HYDRA cells." Neither man understood why so few were left, but were confident it was not SHIELD, nor the Avengers who were responsible; neither of whom were ruthless enough to truly put down the fascists.

Grinning widely, Robert continued. "Then we burn the cells so the authorities get ahold of them and the clues we've left behind. This will spread suspicion just as we go and turn Barnes back into the Winter Soldier!"

Finished, Robert took a few deep breaths to calm himself down, and then addressed the two agents. "Brilliant, isn't it?"

Zemo held his tongue, and after half a minute Phillip felt the need to answer. "It's too complicated for us to safely control and could blow up on us too easily. So, no, we won't be doing that."

His partner blinked, and then shrieked with rage and threw his hot chocolate at Phillip.

 **XXX**

Avenger's Headquarters

Romanoff-Banner Quarters

"How'd it go?" Natasha asked as her husband walked in.

"Pretty good. You were right," Bruce smile made it clear he that he accepted that in hindsight that should have been obvious. "Wanda really did help me clear my head."  
"Good to hear."

"So, what're you doing?"

Natasha gave an exaggerated sigh. "If we're doing this whole interview thing for the New York Accords, it occurred to me we might have people coming around the compound, so I wanted to clean things up so that we could hide that Laura was here. For as long as possible."

Bruce grimaced, but they had both conceded that 'full disclosure' would include Laura's existence. She was still young, but they could not keep her a secret forever. Plus, if spun right, it would show how human the Avengers were; how they had families too, engendering public support. Besides, since there were no powers for Laura to inherit, there was nothing to make people afraid.

If she were a Hulk 2.0, it would likely be a different story.

"So," Natasha went on after Bruce had quickly calmed himself, "I started throwing out some stuff. Unfortunately," reapplying the overdone image of an overworked housewife, "there's just _so_ many guns to sort through."

Bruce gave a small chuckle, but then gave the room another look, to see if there was anything he missed the first time. "You know, I can't say I've ever seen her play with half of these toys."

There _did_ appear to be lots of piles made up of Laura's toys and care products scattered around. While both parents could readily just walk out the door and survive with just whatever they were wearing or had in their pockets, proper childcare required a _few_ more concessions.

They would have to be careful she did not grow up spoiled rotten.

Although given their own childhoods, neither of them regarded that as necessarily a bad thing.

"We're probably going to have to donate half of this in a few years anyways," Natasha sighed. "But yes, we really should try to teach Laura that she doesn't need so much stuff."  
Bruce absently nodded in agreement, before turning to give his wife a scrutinizing look. "You know…" and at his tone she shot him a smile that said 'Innocence be here, no need for further questions,' but he ignored it. "We've talked about how I feel about my counterpart," he continued, "but you've been rather quiet yourself."

She blinked in genuine surprise. "I want to kill him, or failing that throw him away to rot for the rest of his life. For abandoning Laura and hurting you, which are illegal anyways, not to mention everything else he's done."  
"You know what I'm talking about."

It took barely a second for it to sink in, but then with a grimace Natasha nodded. "About my own doppelganger from the future. The one who had a baby with that maniac."

With a sigh, she sat down, on the foot of their bed, and Bruce joined her, holding her hand.

"I don't know," she confided. "She's dead, and I've only the ramblings of someone I _know_ is insane to go on. I know she probably went through the same surgery as me, and yet still wanted a daughter, but after that it's only speculation."

Natasha twirled a lock of her hair in a nervous habit that Bruce knew was a careful act. His wife did not _have_ nervous habits, but she could fake them to help others realize how she felt. Or wanted them to feel about her, but after a certain point Bruce had learnt how to tell what was real or—

He followed that train of thought to the end, and released his grip on her only to wrap his arm around her shoulder and pull her in close. "You think that she only got together with him so that he could give her a baby."

"Yes."

Bruce quietly contemplated this further. "Brilliant scientist, crucial for alternate future Nick Fury to find the Tesseract, but presumably also arrogant and a touch of a mad scientist." Even back before the Hulk, Bruce had been a radical in the science community, with all of the hubris that could come with it. The act of self-experimentation merely being the incident where he had gone too far. Bruce could only guess that without outside intervention to move things along with the intent of creating the Hulk, Robert had been unable to develop that particular experiment to that point, but by this point Bruce would not put it past the man to have dabbled with mind-enhancing drugs intended to boost the intellect.

"So of course, Fury would have sent an attractive and trusted agent to manage Robert," Bruce continued. "One who could play as either submissive to a man with anger issues, while leading him where she wanted, or the eager learner whose intelligence intrigues him as she proves she's smart enough to keep up and answer back. Once Loki was dealt with, with all of the resulting fallout," he made no mention of how the lack of a Hulk would have meant far higher casualties, including Iron Man, "she might have even been ordered to maintain whatever relationship they had, given how he would have been one of SHIELD's brightest remaining scientists. Fury would have wanted him doing as ordered as they tried to rebuild, probably justifying it as even more necessary given how bad things would've gotten."

He stopped for a moment to consider another aspect. Obviously Bruce had given it a lot of thought, but obviously it was largely supposition. "New York was probably nuked even," he hazarded.

Natasha picked up the narrative from there. "And at some point, she would have realized that maybe this man, a brilliant scientist already safely tangled up in her web, might be able to give her the baby she so desperately wanted. Stroke his ego further by having him as the father, to help guarantee his cooperation. If so," and now Natasha's eyes hardened, "how far did she play him? And more importantly, what hooks did she leave in his brain…and how can I use them?"

A kiss on the lips snapped her out of her dark ruminations. "Or maybe she genuinely loved him," Bruce softly said. "But either way, I believe in you, and I _know_ you love me."

Once upon a time, Natasha would have stonily asked "Do you?" or bluntly point out "But that's what I would want you to believe." Yet try as she might, she knew she could not generate sufficient bite for those words. Enough that time has passed between them that Natasha knew her feelings for him were true, and that Bruce reciprocated both her love and trust; the knowledge of either of them being priceless gifts for her.

No matter what happened, they would be there for each other.

 _And if Bruce should die before me; if someone kills him_ , Natasha vowed, _I swear I won't go down such a dark path that he'd be unable to recognize me. Like how I can no longer see him in Robert. Which'll make it easier for me to kill him if_ –when— _we meet again_.

They spent the next hour doing nothing but holding one another, stopping only when Laura woke up from her nap. Immediately both parents sought comfort in cheering her up by playing with her as a family.

 **XXX**

Former KGB/HYDRA Siberia base.

Now new Appendix HQ

Face expressionless, Phillip slowly and deliberately wiped the hot liquid off his face and shirt, while Robert stuttered out his apologies.

Wanting to keep this productive, and genuinely worried that the mad scientist might explode again if his apology was not accepted, Zemo spoke up. "You spoke of reprogramming Barnes. How would you do it? How would you reach him?"

Finally, in control of urge to strangle his partner, Phillip held up an authoritative finger. "First, if we can reach him, do you have the means to control him thanks to that book?"

"Yes," Zemo assured them, opening up the red book to a specific page. "As a contingency against the subject or a rival agency deprogramming him, HYDRA and/or KGB scientists found a way to re-implant them quickly with a person who had already been through the mind control process." He looked a little abashed now. "I don't fully understand the science, but from the description, basically any deprogramming would still leave…mental foundations, if you will excuse the metaphor, that new programming can quickly be built upon with little to no resistance. And it has been tested."

His casual smile restored, Phillip nodded. "They'll have tightened their security against us, but we _do_ still have some Pym Particles we liberated from HYDRA."

"Pym Particles?" Zemo blankly repeated.

They gave him a quick explanation about the miraculous matter-altering substance, and the legendary career of the Ant-Man. An unscrupulous businessman –who was unaware of the inevitable mental deterioration from unshielded exposure— had recreated it until he was foiled by the newest generation of Ant-Man. Yet HYDRA had still stolen a sample, and one of their cells had been struggling to learn how to actually use it when Phillip killed them to acquire it.

"So, we can use the Pym Particles, because Robert," the ex-SHIELD agent gestured at the man, "understands them well enough that we can sneak a team into the Avenger's compound and get to Barnes while he is vulnerable." He shrugged. "Whoever we send though will have to be terminated afterwards, given the brain damaged they'll have suffered, so we may as well make it into a suicide mission."

"But if we just have Barnes shooting people, then they'll know that we're behind it," Robert stubbornly argued, wanting to go ahead with his brilliant idea. "They'll figure out its mind control; that he's not really responsible, and just blame us. If anything it'll make them more protective of Barnes as the weak link. It won't be enough to force them to change."

Taking a small breath to strengthen his patience, Phillip explained. "Once Barnes starts shooting at them, they won't stop to ask questions, they'll just shoot back. Especially if he maintains the element of surprise to kill enough of them from the start."

"And once there's blood on the floor," Zemo confidently finished, "it won't matter. They'll start blaming each other for what happened, and be at each other's throats, finding other grievances against each other. I know they will. I've studied them.

"The Avengers always work best when faced with a common enemy to unite against, but now they'll be against themselves with all of their individual interests coming out."

"…Could you excuse us while we discuss this?" Phillip asked Zemo.

"Certainly. Is there a bathroom and kitchen here?" They gave him directions and he left them alone, hiding his parting smirk in case of cameras. _Now I've just to assure that Barnes kills the baby or the Black Widow, and then the Hulk will finish off the rest of the Avengers._

 _The ones who let Barnes in. The ones who failed to save his loved ones._

 _The ones who are still alive when his lover and child are not._

 **XXX**

Avengers Headquarters

Romanoff-Banner Quarters

The couple had paused in sorting through all of their belongings to look through a particular find:

Their family album.

It was quaint and cheesy, but they both loved it.

Full of pictures that Tony had gotten from FRIDAY of Bruce and Natasha as they had first started becoming close to one another, smiling and laughing as they talked about nothing. Or from later when they had gotten back together.

Later pictures with Laura in them, or with her 'aunts' and 'uncles' holding onto her.

Right now, the husband and wife were putting in pictures from their second wedding, while through the windows behind them, the sun gracefully set.

 **XXX**

Former KGB/HYDRA Siberia base.

Now new Appendix HQ

With practiced ease once Zemo had left, Phillip checked for listening bugs to ensure their privacy, while Robert brought up something on his laptop.

Personally, Phillip was still ready to deck the scientist, but resisted the impulse.

Working so close together in confined space for years upon years meant that the two of them had established a close working relationship, where they knew each other's thoughts without speaking a word.

Most of the time.

 _I think that's all he'll do for today_ , Phillip finally decided. _He'll feel guilty about throwing his drink at me, even if he still thinks he was right about that stupid idea. And probably isn't really all that sorry._

It was difficult being the keeper for a genius.

 **XXX**

[Flashback]

Dark Elf Flagship

Years ago

 _"_ _You insane piece of—" roared Robert, as he slammed Phillip against a wall, oblivious to how the ex-SHIELD agent could have him on the floor in a heartbeat._

 _"_ _What were you thinking!?"_

 _"_ _I thought that was what you wanted," Phillip said in a placating tone. "The way you said it—"_

 _"_ _How could you even think that was what I want," the man raged, before a metal hand settled on his shoulder._

 _"_ _That's enough," a raspy voice whispered, metal servos whirling in her artificial limbs. "It was just a misunderstanding."_

 _"_ _Natasha," breathed Robert, his anger dissipating as he swirled around. "You shouldn't be up, you're still sick."_

 _Natasha Banner gave a weak cough. "Sick you say? I'm dying, and we both know it."_

 _"_ _No," her husband hissed. "I'll find a way to save you," he promised._

 _"_ _Just promise me this," she said with a strength reminiscent of her prime. "That'll you make sure Laura has a happy future."  
"I'll do everything I can, and keep her safe," Robert vowed._

 **XXX**

[Present]

Another detail Robert and Phillip had omitted telling Zemo was how badly they had been hurt strategic withdrawal from the Avengers. Doubtless Robert's behaviour was influenced by that altercation. While their access to advanced medical technology had ensured a rapid recovery, a shot to the knee from your dead wife's doppelganger left a lasting injury in more ways than one, and the medicine was both bitter and painful.

"Given how Zemo has an unhealthy interest in your daughter and this version of Romanoff," Phillip began, "I assume we'll be doing something to keep them safe without our new associate learning about it?"

For his part, Robert rose from working on his laptop and threw his friend a look as if he were insane. "Of course we will. Otherwise we'll risk the Hulk going mad with rage and killing the rest of the Avengers. But Zemo's too useful to get rid of, so we'll have to be careful about it. But maybe nothing too complicated, otherwise that idiot me might miss it."

Phillip successfully repressed the urge to point out everything wrong with what Robert had just said, starting with how not even fifteen minutes ago he had been pushing for a plan that was too detailed to be practical.

Still, Phillip had to admit he had developed a few quirks of his own over the years…

Instead, he addressed the scheme Zemo helped them form. "Are you really sure about this plan? I agree that Barnes would be ideal for weeding out the weaker Avengers, but if we don't alter his programming correctly, he might backstab Rogers –literally— and then we'll lose their top strategist and leader. Also, we're depending a lot on the Avengers jumping the right way with this, otherwise they'll keep together just to spite us."

"Hmm, yes. _Spite_."

Phillip glanced at him, but went back to his musing. "It really is a shame we can't do the Process on Zemo, he's got a lot of anger after all, but he knows how to channel it. He could even be a better Hulk than the present one. Especially since he'd retain all that elite special-ops training and mentality."

Robert only snorted, maintaining the bulk of his focus on whatever task he had in mind.

They _lied_ about being unable to create a superior gamma super-soldier.

The 'Process' that created the original Hulk provided almost all the remaining data they required for working on an individual. The ones created in Las Vegas had merely been an experiment for widespread conscription of fighters.

It was simply a pity both Phillip and Robert were too old to use it.

"Still," Phillip said as he stretched, "we've got to get around to finding some people we can trust with that sort of power. Someday. Maybe after the Avengers issue has been sorted. We have to be careful after all."

It had only been ten years or so that they had been sitting on the procedure.

"Anyways, I'm guessing by the fact I'm doing all the talking that you've got a plan?"

"By all accounts," Robert distractedly said while he typed away at his computer, "Rogers is very close to Barnes. This is what he needs to crush that naivety, along with the rest. Especially if we give the right motivation. The right levers."

The keys kept typing while Phillip calmly waited. Eventually Roberts glanced back up. "Did I say what the levers are yet?"

"No."

"Oh. Right. Well, the first is Zemo himself. Give him what he needs, and he'll be the enemy that the Avengers will need to overcome to survive. Teach them that they've got to be willing to do _anything_ to win."

Phillip nodded, already assuming that Zemo was already planning to betray them. Such was life. It was even possible that they could make it so that his inevitable betrayal could be twisted so that the Avengers were willing to cooperate with them _against_ Zemo. Enemy of my enemy and all that, giving him and Robert the 'in' they needed to influence the remaining Avengers more directly.

Robert went on. "As for what we need to drive the Avengers onto the path that's necessary to make them strong enough to defeat Thanos, teaching them how to truly survive in this universe, we've got to come at them from multiple angles on this one. Put the pressure on them and hit them while the metal's hot.

"Even better, Zemo's little talk reminded me of how we've got something else to help make them dance to the proper beat."

He turned the computer screen around to show a little something they had found a while ago when first searching through the facility:

A video of James Buchanan 'Bucky' Barnes strangling Maria Stark.

 **XXX**

A few days later

"Are you sure we're not rushing this?" Robert wondered.

"It was your idea," Phillip calmly noted. "Besides, the longer we wait, the longer they have to come up with a plan of their own. As you said, we've got to put pressure on them; keep them off guard and reacting to whatever comes next. Force them into making rash decisions; ones that'll get them back on the path to truly saving the world."

Zemo said nothing, content to let the two old men drive the Avengers to extinction on their own. For as intelligent and insightful as they were –the naïve would label them as 'jaded'—, they were still insane. Pushing their buttons was delicate. Zemo could never be entirely sure how many of Phillip's were feigned, but soon it would all be over. He could wait a little longer letting them think he was _their_ pawn.

After all, the more Robert and Phillip felt driven by impatience, the more likely _they_ would feel forced into making rash decisions.

Oh, sweet irony.

 _Almost as sweet,_ Zemo smirked behind his mask of a face, _as the Avengers dying at the hands of one of their own._

With a few final phone calls, stage one was initiated.

 **XXX**

Avenger's Headquarters

Romanoff-Banner Quarters

The next day

"Bruce!"

Fearful at his wife's tone, the middle-aged 'nerd' ran faster than many would believe, joining her in the living room where the TV was blaring.

"— _recent reports about the situation in Las Vegas revealed shocking allegations that the Black Widow, Natasha Romanoff, was personally responsible for the deaths of dozens of American soldiers, which were then covered-up by the Avengers as being the act of the out of control 'hulklings.'_ "

"How'd this get out?" Bruce whispered, while Natasha remained silent, bottling her feelings in. He knew it was a testament to how much she had come to love him, trust him, that she was not already out the door to lead whatever inevitable consequences of this away from the Avengers. "SHIELD had this suppressed, and—Robert!"

She gave a single nod.

" _Copies of these files were given to us merely hours ago, as well as other news stations_ ," who would have all wanted to be the first to break this scoop, " _and our sources say that these were also distributed throughout the Pentagon and other important government agencies_." Now the newscaster took on a more placating tone. " _Given the scope of these allegations, we can neither confirm nor deny the veracity of them, but it is clear that the Black Widow and Avengers must step forward if they want to prove their innocence._ " Then they went on to elaborate on the nature of the charges, as well as repeating what was happening to those just tuning in.

"Looks like they're taking a page from our own book, but they beat us to it," Natasha whispered. "Going public with the truth. All they've got to do is step back while the authorities move in to arrest me, and maybe even the rest of the team, for perverting the course of justice. And if any of us resist, then we really will be at the point of no return."

"If they take any of us into custody, we'll never get out. _You'll_ never get out," Bruce hissed. "You'll be too exposed to the Appendix. We've got to run!"

"And then the dream dies!" she snapped. Then she held up a hand to silence him, knowing her husband was only uncharacteristically panicking out of concern, and then went quiet again. Recognizing that she was organizing her thoughts, Bruce forced himself to oblige her.

"No," she said after half a minute, sporting a faint frown, "there's more going on here. Yes, they've no doubt got plans for if I turn myself in or not."

Bruce said nothing, knowing there was a point to this

"But whatever this is, it's not just some diversion. Pulling this off without SHIELD warning us ahead of time would have taken a lot of work, and lots of blackmail and bribes to make it happen. Especially so suddenly after we drove them into hiding. This is a major investment by them, and we can't let them gain any more momentum influencing public opinion.

Glancing at the screen to make sure there was no further information coming in, and knowing they had little time before Steve ordered the Avengers to assemble, Bruce sat down beside Natasha, holding her hand. "Whatever happens—"

" _Wait!_ " the news anchor declared, holding a finger to their ear. " _We've just received further word from our sources. In response to the charges now being leveled against the Black Widow, and the warrant for her arrest, military units are being deployed towards the Avenger's headquarters. I repeat, the military is making their way towards the Avenger's headquarters!"_

 **XXX**

 **Author Notes:**

 **Well, it is on. And no, I will not answer any questions about Bucky's fate. Unless you are my Betas.**

 **-0-**

 **Recommended fics:**

 **"** **Robot Trip" by copperbadge**

 **"** **Leader of the free world," by copperbadge**

 **"** **Rooftop Conversations" by** **Bobbie23**

 **-0-**

 **Next chapter: 'The Face of Evil'**

 **-0-**

 **Please Review, and I will get back to you!**


	34. Maestro

For better or worse, Marvel owns all of this stuff, not me.

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Many thanks to my wonderful Betas, Bobbie23 and MasterQwertster! Also lots of thanks to Life Dealer for helping me with the brainstorming! Be sure to check out their stories as well!

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Chapter 34: Maestro

-0-

 _Previously: While on the run, Bucky Barnes, managed to overcome most of his Winter Soldier programming on his own, and then voluntarily turned himself in to the Avengers and SHIELD. There he warned them of HYDRA's plot to turn a large portion of Las Vegas' population into hulklings. The technology to do so was later revealed to originate from the Appendix._

 _During the Battle for Las Vegas, General Ross sent first a Black Ops squad and then many regular American soldiers to abduct Laura Romanoff-Banner. In defense of her daughter, the Black Widow went on a killing spree that killed most of those men and women. SHIELD later covered this up, with Ross taken into Avenger's custody._

 _While Bucky has been in voluntary custody, the heroes and SHIELD agents have been working to erase any remnants of HYDRA's brainwashing. In the meantime, Steve and Sam have been bringing him further up to date on the modern world, and have even taken him on some supervised outings._

 _Recently, Helmut Zemo made an alliance with time travelers Robert Banner and Phillip Coulson, with the intention of putting Bucky Barnes, the former Winter Soldier, back under mind control. To put the Avengers off-guard, they made public Natasha's actions within Las Vegas._

-0-

" _You're_ complaining to _me_?!I tried to talk _sense_ into you! Tried to _warn_ you! And _you_ …you buffoon…

"You closed your _eyes_ to it! Imagine how _sickening_ it is to see someone so _brilliant_ and yet so _stupid_! And imagine when that someone is _you_!

"We could have been _gods_ together!"

-Maestro (Future Bruce Banner)

"Should've remembered…the _madder_ you get…the _stronger_ you get…

"…And you're _completely_ mad."

-Hulk (Present Bruce Banner)

'Incredible Hulk: Future Imperfect' by Peter David, 1992

-0-

Avenger's Headquarters

Medium security cellblock

The chairs were cold metal, fastened to the floor to keep the prisoner from moving it in the dark room.

Bare walls and table made of the same material as the chair, meticulously coloured so that if you stared at them long enough it felt like they were sucking out your soul. Even the two-way mirror somehow provided nothing to distract the occupant.

 _How did it come to this?_ the captive wondered again. Everything had been going perfectly. Everything that was needed to guarantee a free, peaceful, sane world. Then in the blink of an eye it was nothing but choking ash.

Of course, _they_ still needed him for something. That was why he was both alive and now in this interrogation room. Nonetheless, after so much time in captivity, even his pride was beginning to crack as he wondered how much longer he could hold out.

The door opened, and a whiff of freedom wafted through. _Or maybe it's my imagination. Or maybe SHIELD was somehow messing with my mind to make me talk._

Then he registered who it was.

Captain America, eyes blazing with self-righteousness. A cold fire that would intimidate any man it was set upon, sending a shiver of fear went down the prisoner's spine. Every one of his generation, every generation since World War Two, had been raised to venerate this man, and his disapproval…cut deeply. _We should've made sure he was safely dead._

"Lieutenant General Thaddeus Ross," Captain America crisply addressed.

'Thunderbolt' Ross suppressed a guilty gulp, and stood straight as if he were in uniform and not an orange jumpsuit. As if he were a common criminal, and not the one who had nearly brought the Hulk himself to heel.

If not for the Black Widow murdering all of his men, it would have worked too.

In full uniform, Captain America calmly took the seat across from Ross, without preamble. So confident in his control of the situation that he saw no reason to resort to any further mind games. "The US military is bearing down on our doorstep, and they've got some awkward questions to ask about what happened during the Battle of Las Vegas. Specifically, about lots of dead American soldiers when you sent them to steal away a baby girl from her mother."

Tapping a few buttons on his wrist computer, Captain America projected a hologram showing trucks carrying troops driving down a road alongside tanks. The perspective shifted to show the Avengers Headquarters in the distance, but at the speed the long line of vehicles was moving it would take them some time.

Helicopters, jets or other forms of air supremacy, or any heavy weaponry like tanks, were noticeably absent.

"They're taking their time," Steve noted, "and being open about it. Which sends some interesting messages."

"They're not afraid of you," Ross sneered.

"Possibly," Steve acknowledged, "but it's also giving us time to react. The military is saying they don't really want to do this, and are giving us a chance to explain ourselves."

"You mean find a scapegoat because that—"

"Language," Steve levelly asked.

Again, Ross sneered, and opened his mouth to be as offensive as he wanted; he was already a prisoner and humiliated, but now the cavalry was on its way. Yet whatever words he had were choked off when he caught something in Captain America's eyes. "You need a scapegoat," he tried again, "because your…lady friend really did kill all of those soldiers."

"In defense of herself and her child."

"Any proof of that went down with the building, and we took out anything that could have recorded that," was the smug response. They had been very particular in setting off that EMP from the start.

"Unfortunately," Captain America nodded. "But we can still present our case."

The imprisoned general stared in confusion for a few heartbeats, before it finally clicked. "You're honestly thinking of taking this to court!?" Ross threw back his head as he laughed uproariously for a quarter of a minute, before he forcefully calmed down enough to lecture the gullible man.

"I'm not naïve," the soldier icily pre-empted. "Government officials, special interest groups, HYDRA remnants, Widow's old enemies, and even the one group I'm truly concerned about. They'll see her and us as vulnerable and make their move. It'll bring them out in the open, and let us deal with this problem the same way."  
"Sounds great," Ross said with a big smile as if humouring Rogers. "Perfect solution even." Then he leaned forward mockingly. "It sounds so simple, but this is real life and it's too complicated. It'll only work if everything goes just right the whole way. And it won't."

"We won't know unless we try," Captain America smirked back. "Besides, right now the ones pulling the strings are _expecting_ us to run from this. Not fight it head on.

"Besides," and now he stood up, "we have to try, or else we're no better than they are. We wouldn't deserve to call ourselves heroes."

As he turned to walk out of the interrogation room, a confused Ross asked, "Why'd you even come down here in the first place?"

Giving him a knowing look over his shoulder, the leader of the Avengers said why before closing the door behind him.

"To give you the chance to help fix this. I had to try."

 **XXX**

Avenger's Command Center

A few minutes earlier

The SHIELD Agen— *cough cough* sorry, Stark Industries employees worked feverishly at their computer consoles, monitoring the approaching military force, searching for hints of other assets, and working to find any clues to solve this whole mess non-violently.

Silently the Black Widow walked amongst the computer screens, subconsciously absorbing all of the information as she racked her brains for an idea. While Steve thought he had a way to make this all end without a fuss, she was all too cognizant that the worst-case scenario involved the US government screaming for her head, Bruce going Hulk to protect her, and Laura being exposed to the world and endangered as everyone tried to use the child to control the Avengers.

 _It might work, claiming self-defense to save my child and then panicking to cover it up. But it'll be harder to convince people that no, we don't need the level of accountability that the Sokovia Accords are demanding. This was going to be hard before, and now… It might just destroy everything we've been trying to achieve._

 _Still, if we can get our message out, it'll be a_ lovely _demonstration,_ the mother sarcastically thought, _of why we want guarantees for our rights. The part about full transparency except for our identities, will be harder for people to buy given how deeply we swept this under the rug._

 _And that's not even getting into how we kept a US general prisoner. Not even Tony or Rhodes were going to complain about that one, after what he tried to do…_

Then every phone in the complex rang.

Steve was not aware of this, because at that exact moment he was still just about to go see Ross, and prison policy stated that no weapons, phones, etcetera were allowed in the same room as the prisoners (and no, no one expected the elderly man to incapacitate Captain America, the hero just believed in setting a good example). Of course, one of the guards could notify him if necessary, although that would only be for a life-and-death emergency.

Every trained agent and hero looked at their ringing phones displaying "Unknown Number," saw how everyone else had the same problem, and from the chill in their spines they knew that someone had made a move on the chessboard.

Someone else. Someone who most likely did not have their best interests in mind.

So, it fell to Natasha to answer, while setting it to speaker-phone.

"Hello, Pizza Unlimited Express, can we take your order~?" she sweetly asked.

" _Jokes at a time like this, Ms. Romanoff? Or is it Mrs. Romanoff-Banner now? Congratulations on the wedding by the way. My wife chose to be Natasha Banner, but at least that keeps things from getting confusing_."

There was no mistaking who it was, and Bruce's blood chilled at the alien sensation of hearing his own voice answer back.

"Funny," the Black Widow lightly said, "we've done something similar. We all refer to you as Robert Banner of the Appendix."

" _You're seriously still calling us that?_ " the time-traveler bit out before audibly taking a calming breath. " _I'm not calling to cause trouble, I'm calling because you need my help. And I'm not just talking about the army moving to your doorstep. His name Helmut Zemo, a Sokovian, and he's quite possibly the greatest threat you've ever faced. I'll give you thirty seconds to pull up his file_."

Maria Hill had already brought up the relevant file before Robert Banner was finished, and the Black Widow quickly skimmed through it. Exactly half a minute later, he started again. "Since you beat Ultron, _Zemo's spent the majority of his time, obsessively studying the Avengers to kill you all. He doesn't care if he lives or dies, or how many civilians do, so long as you either die or tear each other apart. He's a fanatic with nothing to lose, and he's found a way to do it. The evidence against you is his initial stroke. And before you ask the obvious,_ I _care because we need you alive. I assume you've learnt about Thanos by now?_ " The last sentence dripped with innocence, trying to bait them, especially if Vision and Sif had failed to say anything yet.

"Yes," Widow calmly said. "I trust this is the part where you offer us further information about Thanos, for something like an alliance? Enemy of my enemy, in exchange for amnesty for your crimes?"

" _Possibly, although I admit I wish I could've had a chance to hear what you were planning to say at that public announcement you claimed you were going to host._ "

"We're still going to have it," she boldly declared.

" _Sure you are_ ," he said without a trace of mockery. " _Anyways, I'm certain my younger self can tell me all about it when we meet face-to-face_."

Widow's face tensed but she did not miss a beat. "Sorry, but he's busy."

" _Oh? Then who are you going to send?"_ Now he was almost teasing. _"_ _Not Maximoff, I'm not letting her anywhere near my brain. If I have a hint that she's out of the base the deal is off. You need someone who can negotiate on your behalf, tell if I'm lying or not, and take care of themselves if it is a trap. After all, we've got to do this now, given how the military is knocking on your doorstep wanting to talk to you in particular_ , Mrs. Romanoff-Banner."

Robert was silent after that, but Bruce knew the older man was baiting them into asking if the Appendix had exposed what Natasha had done in Vegas. _Just like Natasha thought he would. Let's see what else she got right._

After a few more heartbeats, Robert continued. "So, in light of that, who else could you send besides your…darling husband."

"Maria Hill, with Vision as back-up," Black Widow promptly answered, having already run through the list herself.  
Lady Sif or Sam Wilson were also possible candidates to send to the meeting, with the madman having probably dismissed the Asgardian as too much of a newcomer. Forgetting that someone born into a warrior society, especially one that favoured _male_ warriors, would only survive to live thousands of years by learning to be adaptable when necessary. As for Falcon, he tended to be overshadowed by Captain America. Dismissed as the legend's sidekick, which made people overlook how dangerous and resourceful the veteran, United States Air Force para-rescue airman was.

Either of those two would be perfect for meeting with Robert Banner.

In turn, Vision would be perfect for a support role. What he lacked in human interactions –like the multitude of ways to react to liars— he made up with firepower and the ability to literally phase through the ground or other solid structures to tail someone.

As for the others, obviously Robert would never permit Wanda to come. As for James 'Rhodey' Rhodes, his skills were not the best for this proposed meeting, and she needed the War Machine's personal connections and specialized diplomatic skills for dealing with the oncoming military force. For similar reasons, Captain America was also obviously excluded.

Black Widow knew it was irrelevant to factor in any of the team member's respective firepower in regards to concerns with the approaching army; violence would not solve the situation. However, it was still unclear if the Appendix genuinely wanted to meet Bruce, if it was a trap involving Bruce, or if it was a bluff. As she worked through her lightning calculations, Black Widow had considered how fixated they were on the Avengers and had believed SHIELD dead, hopefully making Hill enough of a surprise for her to pry loose any clues to their intentions.

" _So, the Ice Queen's still alive,_ " Robert said, but she caught his hesitation. _He wasn't expecting Hill, but as the former Vice-Director of SHIELD she's still suitable but he doesn't want her. He wants someone specific, and probably Bruce. The question is, do we let that happen or not?_

" _Not Hill, I've had some bad experiences with the other one_ ," Robert said.

"Did your wife cheat on you with her?" she sympathetically asked. "Don't worry, most wives tend to get unsatisfied and do that."

Her husband merely smirked, seeing the humour in it, but his eyes also twinkled in appreciation of how she was testing for any insecurities.

" _Definitely not the Ice Queen_ ," Robert hissed. " _It has to be the brat, no one else. Vision can come if he wants, but it has to also be_ Mr. _Romanoff-Banner. Just those two_." Widow was about to say something else to tease some details out of him, when he went on. " _I'm doing this against Phil's, Phil Coulson's, knowledge_ ," he hastily added. " _I'm taking as big a risk here as any of you. But he doesn't care if the baby dies or not_. _I don't have any control over what Zemo's planning._ "

"And you expect me to believe you suddenly do," the unruffled Black Widow calmly asked, even as Natasha Romanoff-Banner bared her mental fangs in fury.

" _I care for my wife's sake_."

Further words were cut off as Bruce held up his phone, a message typed in: " _If it is a trap, then he probably means to use me to attack the military or civilians. But we've already got plans to stop that. If he's on the level though, we need that information_."

Indeed, they had been preparing _that_ , for just such a situation.

Captain America was unavailable and she was the senior officer on the spot.

"Very well. When and where."

He quickly gave directions to a café she and Bruce were familiar with in the nearby town. " _See you in an hour._ " Robert hung up.

Black Widow was already in motion. "Have a vehicle prepped for Dr. Banner-Romanoff, and make sure he has a safe route to the meeting spot," she barked to the various agents around her. Simultaneously she texted a summary to Steve, since he had to know the results _now_. "Send a copy of the conversation to all Avengers. Keep digging into Zemo's past for information. And get a hold of Stark so he's in the know."

"Mrs. Romanoff-Banner," Bruce politely said, "permission to depart."

"Granted, Mr. Romanoff-Banner," she returned with equal formality. "Act as you deem best, but I'm sure you know we don't want any incidents, and we'd prefer to have him strapped up in an interrogation cell by the end of the day. Who knows," and now she gave him a cheeky wink, "he might enjoy it."

He smirked in return, but failed to completely suppress the slight blush at her comment. Despite his self-control and how used he now was to her by now, she always knew how to get a reaction. "Well, I'd best get ready," Bruce said as he quickly retreated. Smothering a chuckle and grin, Natasha gave him a peck on the cheek before getting back to work.

 **XXX**

New York City

Stark Tower

The video ended by freezing on the frame of Bucky Barnes choking the life out of Mary Stark.

Robot-like, Tony Stark dismissed the image, and found himself walking towards his nearby suit of armour. Dimly a voice was pestering him about how he and Pepper had called the Avengers when the news broke, and that he had agreed to stay at the Tower. The presence of Iron Man could easily escalate things, and if they wanted him to contribute to resolving this via dialogue, he was only an obnoxious phone call away.

He had promised Pepper that he would play nice.

But now he knew his mom had not died in a car accident.

Automatically his genius mind cataloged how deep this cover-up must have gone. The sheer number of complicit individuals that would be necessary, since even a cursory investigation into the truth of his parents' deaths would have clearly shown it could not have been from a simple car accident _if there were fingerprint bruises on his mom's neck_ _ **as she was murdered!**_

Pepper had been called away for a company emergency a few hours ago (which that same warning voice was trying to say was suspicious), and he had just found the mysterious package which had somehow materialized upon his kitchen counter when he was not looking.

Since FRIDAY had no idea how it had gotten there either, he had immediately run some scans upon it to discover it was simply a DVD wrapped up in newspaper. "My Condolences," had been written on it with a black sharpie.

Once upon a time, Tony would have just played the video without any regard for caution, but he was a changed man now. Too many near-death circumstances, and this was as suspicious as a smiling Natasha asking if he wanted to babysit Laura on short-notice.

So he ordered FRIDAY to scan it harder and do a systems check, while he took a mental step back. _According to FRIDAY it is harmless…so if there's anything bad about it, it'll be the content. Hmm._ Tony took a quick look through FRIDAY's coding to ensure everything looked good there, while verifying that surveillance feed had been fed a loop somehow. Fortunately, it looked like that was all that had gotten through. "FRIDAY," he ordered. "If I do anything strange, like it's some sort of mind-control video, make sure you stop me and call for help."

Without waiting for her acknowledgement, he plopped the DVD into a player with deliberate disinterest…and had then seen… _IT_.

In an instant, everything he had suppressed, all the memories and feelings he had not even talked to Bruce about, came rushing back. The disappointment in himself, rejections, grief over the words never said by either he or them, how he had failed to let them know how he truly felt. The overwhelming desire to have just _one_ more chance to be with them.

All of it.

Before he knew it, Iron Man was in flight towards the Avenger's Headquarters, without calling ahead to warn anyone he was coming.

Thankfully there had been one more witness to the film, and for all that she was a 'simple' Artificial Intelligence like JARVIS had been, FRIDAY knew what her duty to Mister Stark demanded of her, regardless of what he might 'want.' This was clearly a situation where she had to help save him from himself. While her loyalty subroutines were a little uneasy, she prepared to call the Avengers to warn them—

The virus struck.

Based upon coding from the future, beyond even anything a casual scan would have detected, it had been covertly inserted into FRIDAY's programing days ago for one specific purpose: cutting off all communications to and from the Tower…and to Tony Stark.

No one would be warned, and no one would be able to calm him down before he arrived.

 **XXX**

Avengers HQ

"I got your text," Captain America confidently strode into the commander center. Black Widow shot him a look, but he was focused on the task at hand. _And he's not the type to criticize or praise someone's judgment call in public. Especially when it's still in play._

"I've got War Machine and Falcon on standby, but I've made clear to them that it's for dealing with the Appendix, not the military."

"Good." Her leader spent another few heartbeats scanning through all available information to try and find some new pattern or inspiration, before turning back to her. "How do you want to play this? If you let them take you into custody, it can either sink or save the New York Accords. But I can't order you to turn yourself over like that."  
"We'll play it by ear," she calmly said. "What kind of person is in charge of them," gesturing at the image of the oncoming soldiers, "their orders, who gave them, and everything else can work against any decisions we make now."  
"Fair enough," he admitted, his face as much a mask as hers. Then he put a reassuring hand on her shoulder. "Whatever happens, I'll do my best to see that Laura grows up with her parents."

"Ooh, very nice," Widow coyly smiled. "Looks like you might be named her godfather after all."

Beneath her mask however, her emotions were in turmoil.

 _Yes_ , she had been acting in self-defense of her child.

 _Yes_ , they could present sufficient testimony and even some evidence that her child's life had been actively in danger if taken into Ross' custody.

But also, _yes_ , she had killed _many_ members of the US military in doing so.

Given that, and the political mess of the Accords –both of them—this situation was anything but simple. There were infinite ways this could combust upon them.

 _Yet if we run now, even if_ I _leave and run with Laura and Bruce, then the dream dies. Our_ family _dies_.

Any other woman, or man for that matter, might have been on the edge of a nervous breakdown or looking for the nearest source of alcohol.

None of them were the Black Widow, who was busy trying to find the shatter point to bring all her obstacles crumbling down.

Anyone could assassinate a dictator, drug lord, or politician. They just had to have the right skills and willingness to kill. Heck, give any old street thug enough explosives and they could do it as well.

True talent came from knowing how to make their target collapse from within.

Killing the bodyguard, giving one of their rivals the opportunity to handle it for you, with only minimal suspicions. Beating a lieutenant's mistress to death in such a manner to make them think their boss did it, sending them into a conveniently violent rage. Seducing the mark in a way you knew would provoke their significant other into doing them in for you. Disgruntled enforcer, janitor, or overeager kid infiltrating on their own for revenge (usually avenging a family member), with whoever it was just needing the proper resources. Instead of penetrating all of that security to the higher-ups, just get close to the one who manages the finances and could drain the accounts so her target was no longer of value to anyone.

Vivisecting her prey's life so that she knew just what was needed to make them cooperative, break them, or spill the tiny titbit she needed to put the puzzle together and dissemble at her leisure.

 _That_ was the Black Widow.

"I'm going to go meet the soldiers. In person, right now," she decided aloud.

"What?" Captain America gaped, as did many of the other agents who had been pretending to not be eavesdropping.

"You're right," she calmly said while meeting his incredulous eyes. "We've got to handle this head-on, and not in any way they'll expect. Something I'd never do. Me, walking out there with Laura, that'll do it."

"..." was all Captain America could manage.

"There are too many moving parts here," Widow gently elaborated, "and we're not seeing the full board. So, I'm going to threaten to take away some of their pieces with the moral high-ground, forcing them to take action. And if I turn myself in like this…" she let him fill in the rest himself. It could be the publicity stunt the Avengers needed to gain the initiative and push forward the New York Accords. All that would be left would be to hold it.

"You realize that if they've got different orders than we're expecting, or if something wrong happens, you'll both be compromised," Captain America warned her, intentionally referring to the one spy term she and Clint were most afraid of.

Punching him in the shoulder, she replied with winning smile. "I'll be fine." Then she dramatically tapped her chin in thought. "Though I'll wait until Bruce is well under way of course. He'll understand. When he finds out."

 **XXX**

Outside Avenger's Headquarters

Brock Rumlow had once been a team commander for SHIELD's STRIKE operatives, their elite counter-terrorist agents whose ranks included Steve Rogers, Natasha Romanoff, and Clint Barton.

Unfortunately for SHIELD, most of the remaining members had been HYDRA moles, along with Rumlow.

Unfortunately for HYDRA, and Rumlow, after they had failed to take over the world they were left exposed and vulnerable to the wrath of the governments that were rampant with corruption and disorder, fearful of how HYDRA's utopia would have stripped them of their wealth and authority.

Rumlow escaped with his life from the fall of the Triskelion, but most of his face was burnt off in the process. Defiantly, he had remade himself in the freelance 'terrorist' Crossbones, aiming to avenge himself upon the Avengers (he found the pun amusing), while still making a profit.

So, when he had been contacted with a certain job offer, he had jumped at the call.

Now he and his soldiers were making their way through the grass field outside of the Avenger's very home with them none the wiser. In broad daylight at that.

It helped that they were all miniature.

Every 'drop' of the Pym Particles HYDRA acquired had been used up for this, but it was worth it as Rumlow and his men closed in on the building, dropping discrete packages as they went.

They had left some 'gifts' with the military convoy as well.

 **XXX**

Nearby town

A little later

It was a pleasant enough town. Small, out of the way, and just a few short hours ago realized that what they had always thought was just some random property of Stark Industries a short drive away, was actually the headquarters of _the_ Avengers.

Then the military started to advance upon that location.

The mayor wisely ordered an evacuation, citing that he would rather be overcautious than too slow to react, given how tense everything suddenly was. He was also explicit that it was not that he mistrusted the Avengers or approaching military presence, but it was that he did not want his people around if some unknown threat tried to take advantage of the situation. It paid to be tactful after all.

So, it was a ghost town that Bruce drove into, with Vision waiting somewhere out of sight. Checking his phone, custom built by Tony, the scientist confirmed that he had successfully given the military the slip.

Robert was sitting at a table outside of a small café, finishing a coffee with two other cups lying on their sides nearby, empty. "I had time to kill, and it's a good blend," the time traveler opened up with. "I didn't bother making any for you since I knew you wouldn't drink anything I gave you."

Nose twitching, Bruce could tell there was a lot of caffeine in the coffee, as well as more than a touch of cinnamon. _How can he even stand that?_ he wondered, glad to have another example of how the two of them were different.

"I'll skip the chitchat and the awkward ice breaker by getting right down to business," Robert continued as he stood up to face his younger self. "We need your help to take down Thanos. _I_ need your help. Phil is so caught up in his 'survival of the fittest' dream that he can't see the truth of what we and the Avengers can accomplish together."

"Start with who Thanos is," Bruce flatly rejoined.

Giving a small jerk of his chin, Robert mused aloud. "You're comparing what I say to whatever Vision and Sif probably said. Took them long enough. Anyways! Right, Thanos. Cosmic conqueror who worships Death, capital 'D,' by killing people. Mass slaughter is like giving chocolates and flowers, while individual torture is like fine jewelry. He wants to kill everyone in the universe because he can, and he's unfortunately good at doing it. Those who he does not kill, he breaks them until they convert to his cause. He was also the mastermind behind Loki and Ultron, or at least he boasted about it."

He paused to see Bruce's reaction.

He was disappointed, Bruce's emotions were in careful lockdown, and his expression was saying only what he wanted it to.

(The first poker night for the Avengers had been a vicious event, given the mix of very bright people who could count cards and factor in probabilities, that most had perfect poker faces, skills at reading body language, and Tony trying to turn it into a game of strip poker after Thor took him for half his chips)

Right now, Bruce needed every trick at reading facial tells and body language for much higher stakes.

After a few heartbeats, Robert continued. "When Thanos comes, he won't just have an army of soldiers with advanced weaponry, he will also have aliens and individual warriors with powers easily on par with Thor. And that's only if he decides to toy with you. If he wants to wipe out the Earth, he can do so from orbit by any number of means. But he _likes_ to see people suffer.

"And he wants the Infinity Stones on Earth."

"Plural?" Bruce calmly clarified.

"Yes. Plural. But that's where we can win. When he comes for the Stones, we can pre-empt his attack and kill him. And he will come for them himself, that's the sort of narcissist he is."

Robert deliberately omitted that the Mad Titan had also run out of patience after his pawns kept failing.

"And then what?"

"What?"

Slowly, Bruce shook his head. "I said, and then what? What are you going to do to make up for what you've done? The lives you've ruined. You turned _thousands_ of people in Vegas into monsters, and wrecked the entire city, and for what?

"What. Will. You. Do. To. Make. Up. For. It."

With each word bitten out by Bruce, Robert's expression darkened.

Then it was gone in a flash as the elder of the pair amiably smiled. "Saving the world will make up for it. And that experiment gave us vital information."

"To turn people into gamma super-soldiers," Bruce snapped, doing nothing to hide his disgust. "An army of them."

"Of course! We need to win! Against Thanos, _anything_ is justified!" roared Robert, waving his arms.

"…have you figured out how to let them stay in control?" Bruce calmly asked, diverting the conversation.

"Again, of course. It's just not easy."

Bruce was no expert at reading people for deception, and it was just plain weird searching for 'tells' on his own face, but his scientific mind filled in the blanks. _They can do it, but there must be factors keeping them from doing it to themselves._

Changing the topic again, Bruce tried a new tack. "Right now, we're having trouble with the US government, with the possibility of an armed conflict. You said Zemo was behind it?"

"Yes," Robert excitedly agreed. "Like I said, he's a fanatic dedicated to killing you all. Part of his plan is to target your wife and child, to provoke you into an unstoppable berserker rage so that you kill the rest of the Avengers. He's insane though, and you're still our best chance of stopping Thanos. With our help, of course. That's the real issue here."

A chill raced down Bruce's spine, and whispers of Wanda's voice stroked against his mind as he remembered what he had seen in her vision when they had been trying to stop Ultron.

Then he banished it.

"Oh well, then that's not a problem."

Blinking, Robert flinched in confusion. Bruce continued his offensive, having been long aware that the best way to get at the truth was to have the person off-balance.

"My wife is not like your wife. Whoever she was, you obviously didn't have the same relationship with her that I have with Natasha, if that's what you're trying to use to unnerve me. Whatever you send at her, whatever _Zemo's_ sent at her," stressing the name to show what he thought of the 'apparent' threat, "Nat'll survive and triumph."

Malice danced in Robert's eyes, but Bruce imagined he saw something else.

Jealousy.

For at their core, if their lives had truly diverged at the point the Avengers had hypothesized, Robert had come from the same messed up home life as Bruce.

And now Bruce Romanoff-Banner was living the dream of having a happy, healthy family.

 _And who wouldn't be jealous of whoever got to be with Nat?_

 **XXX**

Avenger's Headquarters

"You sure about this?"

"For the seventh time, Rhodey, yes."

After further discussion with Captain America, it was decided that it was best that Natasha went out to see the military forces nearly on their doorstep, she should take the Colonel with her. His personal connections throughout the military, and as a familiar and well-respected face amongst the armed forces, his presence could only benefit them.

They were dressed as what Natasha labeled 'Cautiously Prepared.'

Rhodes had his War Machine suit on, but his helmet was in his hand as opposed to having just the faceplate up. Not only did it visibly make him vulnerable, and thus less likely to try anything, it also made him appear human.

As for Natasha, she was wearing her signature Widow Bites and Batons, but the army commander would know they had a non-lethal setting, and no guns were visible on her catsuit.

(There were however various darts dipped in a powerful tranquilizer hidden all over her, along with other miniature devices).

Walking slowly beside her, holding her mom's hand, was Laura.

 **XXX**

Avenger's Headquarters

Maximum Security Block

Bucky spun around at the noise and took in the sight of a squad of heavily armed and nasty-looking men just outside his cell. Their apparent leader, wearing black armour with a white 'X' on it, and a black hockey mask with similar touches of more white paint, killed the guards with ease. One with a silently thrown knife, and the other with some kind of mechanical gauntlets.

"Well, well, well," the murderer sneered from behind his mask as he arrogantly sauntered over. "Look who we have here. The Winter Soldier himself."

"That's Sergeant James Barnes, serial number 32557038, thank you very much," Bucky calmly but defiantly replied back. "And who're you?"

"Oh me?" And the man pulled back his mask to reveal a face made up of angry eyes, burn scars, and grinning teeth. "Remember me now? Your good old pal Rumlow from our happy HYDRA days?"  
Dimly Bucky recalled him from HYDRA, but would not give him the satisfaction. "32557038," he repeated.

"Well then," Rumlow continued to smile as he pulled out a red book, "I guess I'll just…jog your memory.

Flipping the book open to a bookmarked page, he clearly read aloud with only the barest trace of an accent, "Zhelaniye. Rzhavyy. Semnadtsat'. Rassvet. Pech'. Devyat'. Dobroserdechnyy. Vozvrashcheniye na rodinu. Odin. Gruzovoy vagon...Soldat?"

Bucky blinked in horror as it all came flooding back.

"32557038," he gasped at the memories. But his mind was his own.

"Huh," Rumlow grunted with a trace of disappointment. "So, SHIELD managed to fix that after all."  
"Sergeant James Barnes, and I'm going to carve 32557038 onto you," Bucky hissed with venom.

"Oh well," and Rumlow's sneer was back. "We came prepared." With that, he shifted through the pages to another section, while the men behind him stepped back to reveal that besides their guns and explosives, they had also brought various devices, including a large computer screen that chilled Bucky's spine.

 **XXX**

United States

Generic Hotel Room

Helmut Zemo and Phillip Coulson carefully monitored the situation as best they could through various computer screens.

"Are you sure that your partner can handle it?" Zemo asked. "Taking out the Hulk I mean."

"Stop asking questions I've already answered," Phillip simply stated without any bite. _Is he trying to distract me?_ the wily ex-SHIELD agent wondered. _Quite possible, especially since the orders he gave Rumlow could be interpreted as ones who put a priority target on Romanoff and her child. No matter. At the right time Robert will send her another discrete signal, especially since we now have her personal phone number, to warn her._

 _He'll call and tell her what route to take to get the baby safely out of there._

"Sorry," Zemo apologized. "A part of me just wishes I could be there in person to make sure it goes down. I'm not used to observing an op." That was a half-truth at least, especially since Zemo was savvy enough to know there was no guarantee this plan against the Avengers would work, and he had to be alive. He sincerely doubted that Rumlow and his men would leave Avengers' Headquarters alive.

"No problem," Phillip simply said. "And it looks like things are about to kick off, and no signs of the Hulk's gamma signature so far, and the Vision has been drawn away from base when they'll need him the most. No word from Robert, but he can handle them both."

 **XXX**

Avenger's Headquarters

"Alright," Rumlow declared as he glanced at his watch. "It's go time."

He punched in a three-digit code into another of the machines they had smuggled in via Pym Particles, and flicked the switch.

Instantly, all communications and video surveillance throughout the Avenger's base shut down.

 **XXX**

Avenger's Headquarters

Outside

"Brigadier General Talbot," Black Widow cheerfully opened with.

"Natasha Romanoff," he greeted in return. While he was part of United States Air Force as opposed to the Army that was present, he was also the President's go-to man for dealing with issues with those with powers, and had been at the forefront in hunting down HYDRA. Coulson's SHIELD had alternated between butting heads with the man –usually without violence— and engaging in immensely productive teamwork with each other.

 _Stubborn and incorruptible, but also flexible when necessary_ , Natasha knew. _He'll do whatever he deems right by the law and to keep people safe, but he's also got a moral code he'll try to follow whenever possible. Now how do I do this…?_

"I've more than a half-mind to arrest you for child endangerment right here and now," Talbot continued, gesturing at Laura. As a father himself, it was clear he was not joking.

"How's my daughter in danger when there's me, Rhodes, and all of these fine soldiers to protect her?" Natasha simply asked.

Talbot blinked in surprise and took a second to readjust his thought process. _It's a verbal trap. Ignore and address it later._ "Colonel Rhodes, my apologies for overlooking you," he said, returning the salute. "At ease. How are you doing?"  
"Quite well, Sir. But hoping we can solve all of this peacefully."

"Well yes, that's the trick isn't it," Talbot said neutrally. "Because right now we've got evidence of you killing a bunch of US soldiers, which is something," and now his entire demeanor hardened, "I take rather seriously."

Visibly he glanced at Laura before looking back at the Black Widow. "But I'm trying not to jump to conclusions here, and you wouldn't pull a stunt like this without a good reason. So, either you're going to start explaining within the next three seconds, or I'm going to wonder if this kid you brought has some freaky powers I should be afraid of."

"Are you familiar with General Ross' obsession with the Hulk?" Black Widow smoothly asked, while Rhodes kept silent, knowing that this was not yet the time for him to be involved.  
"The same Ross who seems to have gone on an extended vacation since Vegas," Talbot sarcastically asked. "Yes, that was one of the reasons we assigned him there, given how we were dealing with all those hulklings. I suppose the next thing you're going to say is that you were protecting Banner from those soldiers by killing them?"

"This," she calmly said while gesturing at Laura, "is Dr. Bruce Romanoff-Banner's daughter."

Rhodes sucked in his breath in shock, while Talbot gasped in turn. Taking another look at the girl as he catalogued her appearance, Talbot also judged that the Air Force Colonel was being sincere in his disbelief at what had just been said, and started to put two and two together. _From all accounts, Ross really would be coldblooded enough to after Banner's daughter, and if she's also_ Romanoff's _kid, or_ Romanoff-Banner's _kid, and they were keeping it secret, then the story she's implying starts to make a bit more sense. The Avengers might even pull it off in court. If it's true._

But his gut told him it was, and the Black Widow had just revealed one of the most precious cards in her hand at an apparent whim. _Rhodes sure doesn't look like he was expecting her to say that. What's she playing at? Or does she think that this would actually keep her daughter safer, since secrecy already failed with Ross?_

Talbot opened his mouth to ask when Black Widow's wrist started to beep in a specific pattern, and Talbot found himself starring down the barrel of her Widow Bites, humming ominously. "Is this you?" she asked emotionlessly, yet only decades of military discipline kept the general from shivering.

"Are you really willing to kill a man right in front of your daughter?" he rasped back, noting that the girl appeared strangely calm herself, giving no of denial that the Black Widow was her mother. Said woman also gave no reaction to the insinuation her weapon was set to lethal. His soldiers had raised their guns, but kept professionally silent, while Colonel Rhodes had his shoulder turret trained upon Talbot's men while the hand not holding his helmet was aimed at his fellow Avenger. Clearly War Machine was still in the dark, further clouding the stand-off.

"That beeping is an alert that I installed the last time Laura's life was endangered," she elaborated. "It means communications are being jammed."

"Sergeant Harrison," Talbot promptly ordered, "verify." If the Avengers were playing a game, which he was doubtful of, then they were playing one too complicated to ever succeed. Occam's Razor, a third party was in play, and given the suspicious appearance of the 'evidence' that had led Talbot and his troops here, he knew where he would place his money.

A moment later they had confirmation, and War Machine's helmet was back on and had done the same.

Black Widow saw the innocence in Talbot's face and lowered her arm. "We're under attack."

Grimly, Talbot nodded. "Get yourselves inside, and we'll secure ourselves here. Whatever they're planning, we don't want to get in each other's way." Unspoken was how they were both confident that whoever was behind this, wanted both sides shooting at each other.

"War Machine," Black Widow barked. "Fly us back inside _now_!"

"Yaaay! Fly!" cheered Laura, failing to understand the situation.

 **XXX**

Avenger's Command Center

"Status," Captain America barked.

"Communications and surveillance are out, sir," reported one agent.

"They're already here then," he calmly concluded, projecting an aura of control. Hefting his Shield, he moved towards the door. "Seal the door behind me, and don't let anyone in without the password," and he stopped to covertly write a phrase down on a piece of paper, wary that whoever was behind this may have planted their own secure cameras.

"Keep these men and women here safe," he ordered the guards. "I'm going to go find out who's behind this and disable their jamming. We won't get anywhere if we don't handle that first."

 **XXX**

Break Room #3

"Anyone have any idea what's going on out there?" Dr. Selvig asked a junior analyst.

"No," grumbled the man whose nametag read John Clayton (his parents had somehow failed to hear about Tarzan before naming their child). "Just got off my shift and Widow and War Machine went to see the military." Pouring himself another cup of coffee, Clayton took a long sip. "But whatever's gonna happen, it's either going to take a long while with lots of talking, or it'll be over before we know it."

"Well, not much I can do right now," Selvig sighed.

"Aren't you the Director of SWORD?"

"I am," the scientist agreed, "but I'm also not. They put me in charge of dealing with alien threats because of my experience with them, and my friendship with Thor. But the people who appointed me make the big decisions still. So, I came to visit when Sif called me, for the New York Accords, and then all this went down." Selvig's firm stance made it clear however that he was not going to abandon his friends during this crisis. To blazes with his 'duty.'

Unfortunately, he was ill-suited for helping during this crisis. It was just not his skill set.

 _Maybe if I could help in some way by finding the Appendix…_ Selvig thought as he tried to think of a way to deal with another major threat. One he felt –however irrationally— responsible for given the complicity of his own alternate future self. _We haven't made any progress so far, but that doesn't mean it's impossible. We can't see it and neither do our sensors…but what if we scan for what's supposed to be there? Scan for 0_ _2_ _and look for where it's absent when it should be there, say because there's really an invisible ship pushing it away?_

Eyes gleaming, the scientist's fingers flew over his computer pad as he hurried towards the door to reach his lab. "Tricky, tricky," he muttered. "Going to have to call in some help and build a lot of drones, but it could work."

Agent Clayton did not really understand what Selvig was so excited about, but he got the gist, and knew a happy scientist with the Avengers meant the bad guys were about to distinctively _un_ happy. "Go get 'em, Doc," Clayton saluted with his coffee mug as the older man rushed out the door.

The Winter Soldier shot him between the eyes.

Dr. Erik Selvig's brains, and all of the secrets of the Infinity Stones trapped within, blew out the other side of his skull.

Hefting his new mechanical arm, which Robert Banner had taken savage glee in basing it on Bruce Banner's own work in prosthetics, so that they could easily attach and interface quickly with a host, and the assassin focused on his next target.

 **XXX**

Avenger's Headquarters

Outside

A timer activated by a signal shortly before the jamming started finished its count down.

"What in the—!" gasped General Talbot as devices suddenly popped up around the field and his men –even right amongst them!— and started to detonate.

 **XXX**

United States

Generic Hotel Room

"Ah, the Pym Particle bombs have started to go off," Phillip Coulson assessed, without a sign of regret nor satisfaction.

"I wonder what's going on inside with the Avengers?" Zemo asked with sincere concern. _Is it working?_

 **XXX**

Avenger's Headquarters

"Hold on tight," Black Widow ordered. "And keep quiet. Please."

"Yes, Mommy," Laura said before miming zipping her lips. A special harness on her mom's back was carrying her, and while she was confused and worried, she knew enough to keep quiet.

Then her little eyes caught sight of the metal object flying towards them.

Catching a glimpse of it, Widow threw herself through an open doorway and rolled so her precious cargo never touched the ground.

The explosion's shockwave shook her, but the solid, reinforced walls of the Avenger's home held up against the fire and shrapnel. Barely.

Hitting the ground feet first, she took in her surroundings, including the pieces of metal that ricocheted into the room and barely missed. _Too close_ , Widow distantly assessed, even as her Widow Bites were already firing taser disks. Playing dead was too dangerous now, and she needed whoever it was to hesitate.

"Well, well," a familiar and hated voice called out. "Looks like you're as feisty as ever, Romanoff."

 _Rumlow_ , Widow knew, and quickly concluded negotiation was pointless. Not with his history.

"Mighty glad I split up from my new partner to cover more ground, otherwise I'd have missed you," he went on.

 _He's referring to another threat to make me nervous and too impatient._

"He's an old friend of yours," Rumlow's voice carried on, keeping out of sight. "Likes to work alone like you used to. I also understand he's shot you twice."

Eyes widening, the Black Widow instantly realized what was happening, and what they were aiming for. _And if they know what Steve and I suspect about Howard Stark…_

"And don't you worry," Rumlow gloated some more as he prepared another grenade. "We gave him some special orders regarding his old buddy Steve-o. So, we've got all of the time in the world…"

 **XXX**

 _Bucky_ , Steve Rogers instinctively knew as he looked down at the dead agent. The young woman's throat had been crushed by what appeared to be a hand, and he knew there were few people or things capable of such a feat. While it was possible –perhaps even likely— that there were others capable of this, he knew that if the Appendix wanted to divide the Avengers, then his best friend was perhaps both the quickest and most painful way to do it.

Even as he processed this, Captain America finished disarming the bomb, an incendiary one from what his enhanced nose caught. It had been hidden, but in her final moments the agent, Jane Herandez, had pointed her index finger in its direction. _There'll be more hidden around here. This isn't what I'd expect of the Appendix however, since they want most of us alive. Hidden bombs aren't…surgical enough for them. Maybe Zemo? Or are they working together to some extent?_

Prisoners to turn over to Black Widow to question for information, they would go to great lengths to solve these mysteries.

Then Captain America froze as the faintest sound reached his ears. _That was an automatic weapon with a silencer._

Wary of an ambush, he edged out of the room before all but flying down the twenty-five-meter corridor to the next room within three seconds, maintaining whatever stealth he could. Peering into the next room, he saw the aftermath of a slaughter.

The SHIELD agents were all members of security, outfitted with advanced weaponry and heavy armour, which had all been useless against the calculating juggernaut that had overwhelmed them. At a glance at the carnage and their mutilated bodies, Captain America knew there was no one to save in the room, giving him the freedom to fully take the situation in.

Crossbones had taken sadistic pleasure in preparing the Winter Soldier.

His flesh and blood arm sported a heavy machinegun that his enhanced strength could bear, while his mechanical one was reaching for a grenade launcher on his back, with a broken machete lying at his feet.

Blood was splattered across the assassin's body and face, with only his blank eyes unobstructed.

The front of his armoured vest had been specially treated however with something that was both coloured and prevented any blood from sticking to it. Spelling out a particular sentence.

"DEAR CAPTAIN AMERICA. HE'S STILL IN THERE. HE JUST CAN'T STOP WATCHING WHAT HE'S DOING."

Like a turret, the Winter Soldier's head twists to face Captain America, bullets already firing. Resisting his impulse to charge forward, Captain America instead ducked back behind the door frame. Deliberately he left a little of his Shield showing, presenting himself as a stationary target to ensure the programing controlling Bucky stayed predictable.

 _They want me to hesitate,_ Steve knew with regret and righteous fury. _So that Bucky will kill me. They probably have some other tricks for that too. Stuff so that any of the other Avengers might not fight hard enough either, and I'll bet that grenade launcher has something they hope will take out even Sif._

 _Add in his skills and abilities, Bucky could kill even more then he already has._

Fortunately, Steve had a contingency.

Bucky had demanded one.

What many people did not immediately realize was that his best friend had received intensive surgery beyond that of just his left arm. To counter-act the weight of an entire limb made of intensely durable alloys, metal reinforcements had been implanted into his spine, collarbones, ribs, and almost every other bone. Not only did this even out his balance, but made Bucky far more dangerous.

His friend had been paranoid about SHIELD somehow missing something as they did everything they could to ensure he was free of HYDRA's brainwashing. All but begging, Bucky had convinced Bruce and Dr. Cho to use those metal implants to ensure there was a mechanical safeguard.

And even as he had moved to cover while keeping the Winter Soldier fixated on him, Steve had been working to use that to save Bucky.

In one smooth motion, Steve tore open the front of his uniform to grab the controller from around his neck, no bigger than his thumb with three miniature buttons on the side. "Glad you had me fix this up for you, Buck," he muttered to himself as he punched in the four-digit code. "Time for you to sleep a bit."

The light lit green in success just before the grenade launcher could be brought to bear upon Captain America.

Then the double repulsor blasts hit Bucky right in the back.

 **XXX**

 **Author Notes:**

 **In other news, Laura Romanoff-Barton finally spoke...**

 **The part about Bucky's other surgical modifications used with permission from ShiiroiKitsune21.**

 **-0-**

 **Please Review, and I will get back to you!**


	35. Dying of the Light

For better or worse, Marvel owns all of this stuff, not me.

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Many thanks to my wonderful Betas, Bobbie23 and MasterQwertster! Also lots of thanks to Life Dealer for helping me with the brainstorming! Be sure to check out their stories as well!

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Chapter 35: Dying of the Light

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 _Previously: The Appendix made its move as they manipulated military units towards the Avengers by exposing how Black Widow killed many soldiers in defense of her daughter when Ross tried to abduct her. Then the time traveling 'Robert' Banner lured Bruce Romanoff-Banner away from the others. Just as the Avengers started to calm the situation down, the next stage of the stratagem was initiated, as Rumlow, a.k.a. Crossbones, and his band of mercenaries infiltrated Avenger's Headquarters to re-brainwash Bucky Barnes._

 _Communications and surveillance went down, just before the reactivated Winter Soldier promptly went on a killing spree. Rumlow managed to ambush Natasha and Laura, trapping them in a room as he and his band of terrorists/mercenaries prepared to kill the mother and daughter._

-0-

" _He's my friend_."

-Steve Rogers, Captain America

" _So was I_."

-'Tony Stark, Iron Man

'Captain America: Civil War"

-0-

Avenger's Headquarters

 _Bucky_ , Steve Rogers instinctively knew as he looked down at the dead agent. The young woman's throat had been crushed by what appeared to be a hand, and he knew there were few people or things capable of such a feat. While it was possible –perhaps even likely— that there were others capable of this, he knew that if the Appendix wanted to divide the Avengers, then his best friend was perhaps both the quickest and most painful way to do it.

Even as he processed this, Captain America finished disarming the bomb, an incendiary one from what his enhanced nose caught. It had been hidden, but in her final moments the agent, Jane Herandez, had pointed her index finger in its direction. _There'll be more hidden around here. This isn't what I'd expect of the Appendix however, since they want most of us alive. Hidden bombs aren't…surgical enough for them. Maybe Zemo? Or are they working together to some extent?_

Prisoners to turn over to Black Widow to question for information, they would go to great lengths to solve these mysteries.

Then Captain America froze as the faintest sound reached his ears. _That was an automatic weapon with a silencer._

Wary of an ambush, he edged out of the room before all but flying down the twenty-five-meter corridor to the next room within three seconds, maintaining whatever stealth he could. Peering into the next room, he saw the aftermath of a slaughter.

The SHIELD agents were all members of security, outfitted with advanced weaponry and heavy armour, which had all been useless against the calculating juggernaut that had overwhelmed them. At a glance at the carnage and their mutilated bodies, Captain America knew there was no one to save in the room, giving him the freedom to fully take the situation in.

Crossbones had taken sadistic pleasure in preparing the Winter Soldier.

His flesh and blood arm sported a heavy machinegun that his enhanced strength could bear, while his mechanical one was reaching for a grenade launcher on his back, with a broken machete lying at his feet.

Blood was splattered across the assassin's body and face, with only his blank eyes unobstructed.

The front of his armoured vest had been specially treated however with something that was both coloured and prevented any blood from sticking to it. Spelling out a particular sentence.

"DEAR CAPTAIN AMERICA. HE'S STILL IN THERE. HE JUST CAN'T STOP WATCHING WHAT HE'S DOING."

Like a turret, the Winter Soldier's head twists to face Captain America, bullets already firing. Resisting his impulse to charge forward, Captain America instead ducked back behind the door frame. Deliberately he left a little of his Shield showing, presenting himself as a stationary target to ensure the programing controlling Bucky stayed predictable.

 _They want me to hesitate,_ Steve knew with regret and righteous fury. _So that Bucky will kill me. They probably have some other tricks for that too. Stuff so that any of the other Avengers might not fight hard enough either, and I'll bet that grenade launcher has something they hope will take out even Sif._

 _Add in his skills and abilities, Bucky could kill even_ _more then he already has._

Fortunately, Steve had a contingency.

Bucky had demanded one.

What many people did not immediately realize was that his best friend had received intensive surgery beyond that of just his left arm. To counter-act the weight of an entire limb made of intensely durable alloys, metal reinforcements had been implanted into his spine, collarbones, ribs, and almost every other bone. Not only did this even out his balance, but made Bucky far more dangerous.

His friend had been paranoid about SHIELD somehow missing something as they did everything they could to ensure he was free of HYDRA's brainwashing. All but begging, Bucky had convinced Bruce and Dr. Cho to use those metal implants to ensure there was a mechanical safeguard.

And even as he had moved to cover while keeping the Winter Soldier fixated on him, Steve had been working to use that to save Bucky.

In one smooth motion, Steve tore open the front of his uniform to grab the controller from around his neck, no bigger than his thumb with three miniature buttons on the side. "Glad you had me fix this up for you, Buck," he muttered to himself as he punched in the four-digit code. "Time for you to sleep a bit."

The light lit green in success just before the grenade launcher could be brought to bear upon Captain America.

Then the double repulsor blasts hit Bucky right in the back.

 **XXX**

Grinning with malicious glee, 'Crossbones' Rumlow toyed with the grenade in his hand.

Romanoff was stuck in the room along with her baby, but the explosive was sure to even the odds so the situation went from 'some of us are going to die,' to 'tricky but doable.' Theoretically.

People, especially women in Rumlow's experience, were the most dangerous when protecting their children. He gained a scar over his second right rib the last time he killed a mother in front of her child. If he had the opportunity, he would be cracking ribs and piercing skin this time. Nonetheless, as satisfying as it might be, he had not survived this long by letting himself be distracted by personal desires.

"You know you won't get away with this," Black Widow defiantly called out from inside the room.

"Doing well so far," Crossbones sneered. "And this party is just getting started."

"I mean, seriously," she continued, "what do you hope to gain out of this?"

"Revenge sounds pretty good for starters," Crossbones rejoined. "And then—"

Widow railroaded right over him. "Loki, Ultron, and a few others that I don't remember the names of, and now you. And I'll probably forget you too. Why not just surrender to make this easier for everyone?"

Scoffing, the mercenary—terrorist was about to fire something back, when a sense of unease gripped his spine.

Crossbones, once one of HYDRA's most elite agents, never saw what hit him.

The explosion took out his rear guard, and either burned through the rest of his men or shredded them with shrapnel. Only his heavy armour kept Rumlow alive to realize he could not see out of one eye, and he could smell his own flesh burning.

Professionally, Sam Wilson the Falcon kept in motion as he smoothly dropped the spent grenade launcher and stepped back around behind the corner, providing him cover. Sticking out of the wall was a rack loaded with pristine weaponry, ready for use. He grabbed a machine gun for both himself and Widow, along with two emergency bags. With a click of a button, the whole thing slid back into concealment, without leaving a seam to show it was there.

"Widow!" he called as he jogged up. He stopped to see Rumlow was still alive yet dying, and with some distaste and a bullet, put the man out of his misery. And to keep the fanatic from finding enough strength from his hate to find a grenade of his own.

"—and after Tony's done with you," he heard her say despite the explosions, "the narcissist will probably spend half of it droning on and on," she said offhandedly. "Then it'll be Vision's turn. Now he—"

"Widow! Alpha, Barney, three-six-niner!" Falcon interrupted again, not daring to walk into a room guarded by the most vicious woman he knew. "This morning you had oatmeal and sausages for breakfast," he tried as a way to further identify himself. Strangely, she kept talking as if she could not hear him. "Widow? Natasha?"

Gingerly, he edged his head around the corner, before blinking as he stepped fully into the room.

A hole had been cut into the far wall, the straight lines of the square blackened and still glowing red in places from extreme heat. On the ground was a little a little device that was projecting what was obviously a voice recording to keep people distracted.

Falcon hesitated for a moment, before heading back into the corridor. Following her into the hole was risky, and he trusted her to handle herself. More importantly, her priority was keeping her daughter safe, while he –the Avenger gave his gun a quick once-over— had to make sure there were no other hostiles in the base.

Then the first of the incendiary bombs Steve had not yet reached went off, as the timer activated by Rumlow's stilled heart sent the signal.

 **XXX**

Skies above the Avenger's Headquarters

Tony Stark was in full Iron Man mode, ready to be an Avenger.

Dimly, a part of him was aware that he had received no further updates from the compound, but he was not too concerned about the details. He was just going to march in there through anything that got in his way until he found Bucky and his 'old buddy' Steve-o to find out what they knew about his parents' death. And then? Well…Tony would just have to see.

Then he heard explosions and saw the smoke and fire bursting out of the compound, and instinctively halted mid-air to assess.

The lovely headquarters he had spent so long refurbishing was going up in flames, with delayed explosions detonating every few seconds. As for the military surrounding the place…yep, those were definitely dead soldiers. More dead soldiers. Fantastic.

 _And we thought we had it all figured out to fix everything so we could save the world,_ Tony bitterly thought.

Then the Headquarters were rocked with fire and explosions. Yet they seemed to branch out from where he knew one Bucky Barnes had been locked up.

"FRIDAY," he barked. "Track and confirm that trail."

No response.

Very worried now, he swan dived subtly to ram right through the roof to where he could detect two heat signatures right at the edge of the destruction. Save lives first.

Through fire and debris, he broke through and saw Captain America. Steve Rogers.

Wrapped in a vicious, killing rage. So focused upon his prey he was blind to Tony's approach, the surrounding fire, or even the explosions still happening.

The living legend was fighting War Machine with everything he had, always on the move as his Shield carved divots into the armoured suit. Rhodes was stuck on the defensive, repulsors being dodged or deflected, sparks flying from where the shoulder gun used to be, metal plating stripped away in patches, and visibly confused.

Tony Stark hesitated as the man whose respect meant the most to him, though he'd never admit it out loud, was inexplicably fighting his best friend.

Iron Man's instincts were like flawless circuitry—without hesitation— as he targeted and fired upon the clear aggressor.

Spinning aside, Captain America evaded the repulsor shots, revealing the body of Bucky Barnes lying on the ground, his back caved in.

Even from this angle it was easy to recognize –for Iron Man had seen it all too often— that the cause of death was two high-powered repulsor shots.

Death would have been near instantaneous.

"Oh," was all Iron Man could utter, before rocketing forward to support War Machine. He did not know what exactly had happened or why, but it was clear Captain America was hell-bent on vengeance. Nonetheless, together he and his partner could take him down without seriously hurting him.

 _Is this what it really means to be an Avenger?_ Tony darkly wondered.

He wished what was meant as morbid humour did not seem to ring so true.

 **XXX**

In another part of the base

Two burning lines cut through the reinforced wall, carving out an entrance within seconds, the 'door' soundlessly lowered down. Cautiously, Black Widow stepping out, little Laura firmly strapped to her back.

One of the benefits of having a genius husband (and Tony as his Science Bro) was her batons and other equipment received regular upgrades. Now, not only did the hilt ends of them have an attachment to allow her to supercharge them if plugged into a power grid, they also had an advanced version of what had been called a 'Mouse Hole,' which is what she had just used to help navigate through the building to avoid anything or anyone who could harm Laura. It could cut through walls to infiltrate or escape. Nick Fury himself had used the original laser-cutting device during HYDRA's first attempt on his life, cutting right through his car and pavement below to reach the sewer. Suffice to say she had made use of that feature once more than once.

In emergencies, it functioned as a highly lethal close-range weapon as well, although Black Widow considered that too flashy for most circumstances. If she wanted her victims alive, her batons' stun function would suffice; if she wanted them dead, a knife was quieter, gave off no light if treated right, cost no power, and burning a hole into someone was too distinctive for investigators and/or pursuers.

 _But what next?_ she wondered, knowing she was only reacting to events so far. If she, the Avengers, or Laura were to survive, they had to take the initiative.

"Natasha!" a familiar voice hissed, and she turned to see Bruce and Wanda rushing towards her.

Without missing a beat, she aimed her Widow Bites at them.

"Carrot sticks, uranium," Bruce promptly said. Considering how the last time she had seen him he had left to talk to an evil duplicate of himself, he gave more proof of his identity. "This morning you put on Laura diapers with Tony's face on them, because she still hasn't mastered potty training enough for us to risk it with how tense things are."

Wanda listed off her own code words. "Waffle cones, vacuums, sunshine."

"Tony Stark is a sex god," Natasha quoted, knowing it was the last thing anyone would imagine her saying— out of habit she did another quick check for the narcissist to ensure he was not lurking around to overhear. She lowered her weapon while still sweeping her eyes around. "How'd you find us so fast?"

Realizing that was why his wife was suspicious, Bruce pulled out a small electronic device from around his neck. "Laura's personal tracker," he smiled. "Led me right to you. Wanda and I ran into each other on the way over here."

"Falcon and Sif were with me," Scarlet Witch said. "But we split up to try and cover more ground, and then the explosions happened."

Black Widow grimaced at that. Dividing their forces was far from ideal, even if this was supposed to be their home territory. The explosions that had just rocked the base were a major concern however.

The Avengers had no choice now but to regard their entire headquarters as compromised. Not to mention the issue of there being an army outside. She doubted the masterminds behind this had overlooked them. The obvious play (and she almost prayed they did not have something worse) was to use the situation to frame the Avengers for the demise of more soldiers. Then use that to continue their earlier successes at undermining them with the public and the government.

Speaking of which…

"What happened with your meeting with less-attractive-you?" Black Widow asked her husband as she took the lead in heading towards one of the concealed tunnels. She had been in charge of security after all, and Tony enjoyed the chance to show off technology to answer any requests she might have.

"Weelll…" Bruce Romanoff-Banner began.

 **XXX**

Nearby town

Robert Banner and Bruce Romanoff-Banner

Flashback

 _"_ _I see," Robert ground out. "So, what is your decision regarding our cooperation?"_

 _Resisting the urge to get into Robert's face to directly snarl, Bruce simply said,_

 _"_ _We're willing to work with you, but whatever you're planning, it can't be any more of your amoral experiments or manipulations. Otherwise, that's it, deals over. This is your last chance to earn any trust, and if you continue down this path, then we'll do everything we can to sabotage whatever plans for the future you've have. If you want to save the world, then we'll do it the right way. Fighting to protect people, not using them as fodder."_

"Amoral _," Robert hissed as he latched onto that one word. "Are you really that naïve? Survival comes at a price, and when the fate of everything and everyone is on the line, you pay whatever price it takes."_

 _For a moment, despite himself, Bruce felt pity. Then the anger returned._

 _"_ _You're wrong," he shortly said to his twisted, older self. "And that's why you'll lose. Even if you destroy Thanos, there'll be nothing left."_

 _"_ _Unbelievable," Robert scoffed in disgust. "I tried you know. I honestly tried._ _I tried to talk_ sense _into you! Tried to_ warn _you!" Now it appeared he was physically restraining himself. "And_ you… _you buffoon…You've closed your_ eyes _to it! Imagine how_ sickening _it is to see someone so_ brilliant _and yet so_ stupid _! And imagine when that someone is_ you _!_

 _"_ _We could've remade the world together! Into something precious! A Utopia"_

 _To his own surprise, Bruce's lips twitched into a caricature of a smile. "You know, I'm glad you don't have your own Other Guy. After all…the_ madder _I get…the_ stronge _r I get…And you're_ completely _mad. Imagine what he'd be like with you for his base of reasoning"_

 _"_ _I see," Robert glared. "That's it then. And when Thanos comes and kills all you love, I'll save them all. Who knows, maybe Natasha will appreciate a_ real _man then."_

 _Bruce clenched his fists, but then automatically reigned in his anger. He might no longer be angry all the time, but he was well familiar with controlling it. Channeling it, while letting his scientific mind work._

 _"_ _Why are you even here?" he asked. "If you really wanted to tell me about Thanos, if you really cared about working as equals, you would've brought me notes, something concrete. You're a scientist, and you know the need for empirical evidence, or something I could look through. You—"_

 _Robert's eyes darted to the side, and Bruce turned to look._

 _A clock behind a store window._

 _"_ _You're stalling for time," Mr. Romanoff-Banner quietly concluded, still turned away from the other. "Goading me."_

 _"_ _Yes," Mr. Banner smugly confessed. "We couldn't really let a wild card into it after all, and that's what you are, regardless of how much control you have over the Hulk."_

 _"_ _My wife and daughter are back there," Bruce tonelessly noted, ruthlessly controlling his emotions._

 _"_ _My daughter, actually," Robert argued, but did nothing to press the issue. "And yes, I do hope they don't die. Zemo is targeting them specifically after all, despite what he's tried to tell us, but with you and me doing a suspicious meeting like this, I'm betting the Black Widow will be a little more on guard, which should make the difference. Just to be sure of course, she'll also be getting a call in a minute to warn them._

 _"_ _The important part however was making sure you were absent, so if anything does happen to them, you won't be able to blame the Avengers for their deaths and try to kill them. Goodnight."_

 _Miniaturized dart guns within the shoulder padding of Robert's coat fired needles with a nano-bot payload that would subdue his younger counterpart while suppressing the Hulk._

 _They bounced right off the back of Bruce's neck, the skin rippling._

 _Bruce turned around, and his skin blurred and then disappeared to reveal silver metal underneath his clothes, a tight metal helmet on his head reminiscent of Iron Man._

 _"_ _Did you honestly think we wouldn't prepare for you," Bruce stated. His voice conveyed it was not a question, coming through the perfectly clear faceplate.  
Stumbling back, Robert stammered out his analysis. "I see, photo-reactive panels, but instead of trying to project the image of you from behind you so that it appears up front to turn you invisible, it just projects the skin underneath. Because your skin tone and movements are more consistent, it is easier to maintain without discrepancies, hiding the fact that you are armoured. Brilliant ready. Although it would have trouble with shifting light and shadow."_

 _"_ _Close enough," Bruce agreed, pulling a gun from out of the back of his pants. "Now," his icily ordered. "How do I stop it?"_

 _Dr. Bruce Romanoff-Banner had been busy since Las Vegas, creating a device that would shield him from the effects of the gamma radiation bomb that had transformed the city's citizens, or anything similar. Shortly before the (second) wedding, Natasha had proposed that Bruce start wearing a special armoured Kevlar suit, but also with properties similar to the Photostatic Veil (or Holographic Mask as it was more commonly called), in which nano-sized holographic cells projected the image that instead of full-body armour, only regular skin and clothes were visible. The tricky part had been to create the illusion that the subject was not bulkier than usual, but the result was that an Avenger could walk incognito in public, while still fully outfitted and ready to fight._

 _They only had one (prohibitively expensive) version prototype made so far, but Captain America and Black Widow had quickly realized that given the Appendix's expertise and actions, it was best for Bruce to have it, especially after Tony Stark was personally done with it. During the evacuation from the former Dark Elf Carrier, Captain America had grabbed the needle that had carried the nanobots that had nearly killed the Hulk, and the brilliant inventor had made the new suit impervious to it. Shielded from all forms of sonic attack (which the Appendix favoured), and immune to all known and theoretical forms of mind control, and only an intensive examination by the most advanced scanners would even detect Bruce was wearing a mask._

 _(When asked how he could protect Bruce from 'theoretical' mind control techniques, Tony told Steve to shut up or read his "unnecessarily long report which I wrote up just to remind you all how brilliant I am.")_

 _Add in how Bruce had been training how to use a gun and fight from Natasha herself…_

 _The essential factor to maintain the suit was whether Bruce could keep his rage under control or not, but that concern was nearly irrelevant by this point. Especially, if he knew that someone was trying to rile him up to kill people. Definitely if they were those he cared about. Cool as a glacier then._

 _"_ _How do I stop it?" Bruce repeated. "Or do I have to start taking a page from my wife's handbook and shoot you through the kneecap too?"  
He was honestly unsure if he could go through with it, even now, despite everything. Nonetheless he was also confident Robert was unwilling to call his bluff. The older man was too used to being in control, or lashing out when he was not. Except this time there was a gun trained on him._

 _"_ _We snuck people in with bombs, and they're going to reactivate the Winter Soldier programming. But they're also instructed to get warning to Nat, so don't worry."_

 _For a few heartbeats Bruce considered his options, and then pistol-whipped Robert._

 _The time traveler dropped like a sack of bricks, with Vision catching him before he hit the ground. The Synthoid finished merging out of the pavement he had phased through, giving Bruce a stern, disappointed look. "We could've asked him more questions, if you hadn't lost your temper."_

 _"_ _Can you call HQ?" Bruce ground out._

 _There was a pause, and Vision's brow furrowed in concern. "No."_

 _"_ _Thought so. Leave him, we've got to hurry back to help."_

 _Laying Robert down, Vision grabbed Bruce in his arms and took flight as fast as he could._

 **XXX**

Present

"Vision was with us when we got here," Bruce finished, "but he decided to go on ahead. Bombs are less of a threat to him, and he can travel through walls. He was trying to find the source of whatever was disrupting communications and surveillance."

"Well done," Black Widow complimented. "For the record, I never got any warning. Either Robert was lying, or there's some difference of opinion amongst the Appendix. Possibly Zemo sabotaged that." Which she was already planning on exploiting.

"That's all well and good," Scarlet Witch sharply said, "but what do we do now? Run? Or fight?"

It was just now that both she and Bruce realized Black Widow was leading them to an evac point. "I need to get Laura out of here," the super-spy confessed. "And I've got a feeling that a strategic withdrawal is needed anyways. We can't risk splitting up anymore. Not with everything else that's going on. Otherwise we'll stay stuck on the defensive. We'll have to trust that Vision can find the jammer. As you said, he's the best suited for that anyways."

 **XXX**

Avengers Headquarters

Medium security cellblock

(In another part of the base)

Lieutenant General Thaddeus Ross of the US military, and current illegal prisoner of the Avengers, willed himself to stay still as the lights flickered again despite how the explosions had already stopped.

The Stark Industries (SHIELD) guard glanced at the older man, aware that he had been a fully trained soldier in his youth, but he just sat on his prison cot looking at the floor. Reassured, Agent Jones turned back to his console to try and figure out what was going on, just as the power cut off along with the lights and the forcefield acting as a door to Ross' cell.

Burning with adrenaline, he pounced.

Old training came to the fore as the edge of one hand cut across Jones' throat even as he dragged them both to the floor, but Jones was still SHIELD. Automatically he yelled for back-up, even as an arm raised itself to partially block the blow to his neck so he was not completely winded. Unfortunately, the prisoner's maniac energy overwhelmed him as Ross managed to use his knees to pin down one of his arms and used the advantage to cut off his air supply.

It was this sight that greeted Agent Sheila Mundane as she entered, and fired her pistol twice to drop the general.

"No," he whispered in disbelief, clutching his bleeding gut, strength draining away as Jones forcefully pushed him off. "No," Ross managed again as he lay on his back, before a woman with blonde hair and glasses stood over him. "You should have abandoned your obsession with Banner a long time after Harlem," she coldly informed him. "Never mind going after a woman and her child like that."

The light died in his eyes, and Agent Mundane helped Jones up and they both rushed off to help the living.

 **XXX**

Captain America threw his shield to the side, ricocheting off the walls so it came back to hit War Machine in the back, his primary target. His body was in motion even as he flung his weapon at one opponent, and bear-rushed Iron Man while pushing his arms wide so he could not bring his repulsors into play.

Knowing words were useless, Iron Man grimly held his ground while sorting through his available weapons for one that could take down Rogers without killing him. His arms being forcefully aimed away made that job harder. Skidding back a meter, his suit's strength asserted itself as he struggled against the super-soldier's own, just as he realized the latter –a master tactician— had just sacrificed his mobility.

"Trap!" Iron Man barked just as War Machine leapt forward to assist –Captain America's Shield finished bouncing off the walls after hitting War Machine in the back the first time only to hit him again on the return trip. Just as had been calculated by the living legend.

"Right, badly injured it is," Iron Man declared as he assessed the fresh damage to his friend. Rogers was not fighting like a berserker, but there was cold, calculating fury that made him even worse.

The unibeam over the arc reactor on Iron Man's chest charged and fired before Captain America could react. Flying backwards he smashed against War Machine, who was less stunned since he was not the one shot, and instinctively put him in a hemlock maneuver. Playing it safe, Iron Man fired a projectile from his freed arm, which wrapped up his former leader's legs like a bola. The billionaire was debating the ethics of punching him unconscious to be safe to secure him, while evacuating him from the burning building, when the Goddess of War struck.

Lady Sif's sword was fluid and precise, lopping of a chunk of War Machine's shoulder armour without hitting flesh. The loss of circuitry deadened the arm, allowing her to grab Captain America while tackling the colonel in one acrobatic movement. Flipping up from her roll with her boyfriend on her shoulder, she ignored the others and charged straight through a wall, the metal reinforcement parting with only minimal resistance as she led with his Shield.

"Huh," Iron Man managed, before hurrying over to check on his friend. "You okay?"

"Been better," Rhodey gasped. "But I'm not hurt. Do we go after them?"

"You'd say that if you were missing an arm and a leg. 'Just a flesh wound'," Tony grumbled, slightly ashamed to be quoting Monty Python in such a situation. "No, they can take care of themselves. We need to check on the others. My comms are out, what've you got for me?"

There was a slight pause, and War Machine was back in play as he got up to stand tall. "Mine's being jammed too. This place is on fire," and indeed they could see flames spreading towards them, "so we should probably pull back."

Almost slapping himself as he remembered, Iron Man immediately chose a random direction and headed in towards the less damaged parts of what had been the Avenger's Headquarters. "When I came in, I saw that the soldiers had been hit by explosions too. They've been attacked, so they'll be working to secure this area and sort out who's responsible afterwards."

"I'll look for more survivors. You head outside and let them know we're cooperating."

 **XXX**

Outside Avenger's Headquarters

General Glenn Talbot was ready to bite tank armour.

Men and women under his command were dead. They had been attacked by what looked like sophisticated mines or bombs that just appeared out of nowhere and exploded. They had no idea where they had come from, but he suspected the Avengers were not responsible. For all that involved advanced technology like they had, explosives were too…crude for what he knew them capable of. Some sort of tranquilizer gas for instance.

The Avenger's home base had also been attacked by parties unknown, and could see the flames from the fire moving through the base.

To top it all off, communications were still being jammed.

 _This isn't going to end well_ , Talbot knew. _Someone's playing us. It's just all too convenient. And for now, all I can do is just dance along to their beat._

Everything was thrown into chaos, and even the chain of command, which the military prided themselves upon, broke up just enough. He needed to regain control of the escalating situation.

He deployed platoons to secure the area, while more headed inside the compound to take charge of what Talbot was going to label as simply a crime scene, trying to keep the situation from inflaming further. They would also provide search and rescue support to the occupants.

The General was personally looking at tracks uncovered by his scouts (his people were no super-spies, but they were very good at their jobs), indicating a heavy woman had run at high speeds away from the complex. "Possibly Sif," he speculated. "Moving fast enough that she slipped out before you boys got here. Still, best we don't make assumptions."

"Sir!" a junior officer who was standing in for senior ranking men and women who were dead or wounded. "We've been out of contact with Sector 3 in the South-East for an undetermined amount of time!"

"Well get some platoons over there ASAP!" barked Talbot.

Suddenly their radios crackled back to life. "This is Vision," a calm voice announced on every channel. "Surveillance and communications have been restored. I apologize for the delay."

 **XXX**

"Oh, this ain't good," Natasha muttered, while Wanda and Bruce looked green. Laura's eyes were covered by her father.

The escape tunnel emptied out close to what the US army on-site were calling Sector 3, and the small clearing amongst the trees was littered with corpses.

"Who did this?" Wanda choked out, even as she realized who would be blamed for this: the Avengers.

"And is it a coincidence that they were already dead before we arrived here?" Bruce darkly tacked on. There _were_ only a few tunnels and thus only a few exit points, but the Avengers had already endured too many 'coincidences' over the last few months.

"We've got to keep moving," Natasha sharply said, while detaching her daughter and handing her to Bruce. "Go on ahead, I'll see what I can find out."

Natasha stopped to look the bodies over more carefully.

 _The ones grouped together over here all had their throats slit. It's deep enough it would have been nearly instantaneous_. Indeed, from how clean their hands were, several of the brave men had apparently died too fast to even try to desperately grab their bloody necks. _Given how close they are to one another, and how they're the only ones that have such wounds, they were the closest to their attacker._ She looked at the rest of the two platoons, and how their bodies were positioned. _And the first to die, with the others reacting._

A glance was all that was needed to see that these soldiers had all been shot between the eyes. Each and every one of them. _That should be impossible. For normal humans at least._ Expressionless, Black Widow squatted down next to one of the bodies and scanned their head with one of her tools. _Normal bullet composition, 5.7×28mm ammunition._ Turning to look at where the men and women had been facing, she saw that some of the trees where they had evidently been aiming at had been shot up, signifying they had tried to fight back.

What was scary however, was how each kill shot perfectly mirrored the other. _Not even Clint or I can do that. Shooting each and every moving target precisely between the eyes from a distance. To the centimeter. Maybe even to the millimeter._

Knowing she was short on time, Widow searched the ground where they had been shooting. _Whoever did this, they followed the soldiers, staying low to the ground and dirt they had already disturbed, leaving no discernable footprints. There are also no shell casings for what they fired, and no signs of any bullets_. This was important because even the soldiers' projectiles were missing, with parts of the trees gouged up to dig them out. The condition of those bullets, such as if they had a trace of blood, or were flattened as if they had impacted against anything bulletproof, could have been a useful clue. _Whoever did this, they knew how to cover their tracks effectively, leaving no trace. The question is, what was their motive? Standard professionalism like I would always do, or was there something especially unique that they do not want anyone to know about?_

Then she realized that while she did not know the identity or gender of the killer, she was thinking in singular tense as her subconscious put the finer details together. The prone bodies and the angle of the wounds that had ended their lives, left a narrow area to maneuver without leaving tracks, and the direction these highly trained, veteran military personnel had all been firing at. _One person did this,_ Black Widow knew, _and did so without hesitation_.

 _And whoever ambushed them, they are either an Enhanced human, trained as an elite assassin, something alien, or any combination of the above. With no compunction for mass slaughter._

 _Great. As if we didn't have enough to worry about._

Soundlessly Black Widow hurried to rejoin her family in their escape, and after a few meters she felt a shiver run over her spine. _They're behind me. The killer._

Eyes swept her surroundings as she moved, but at that particular instant all of the trees were too far away for cover and whoever was at her back was a perfect shot.

So, she kept running. Whoever it was, had cleared a path and could have killed her the moment she knew they were there. No, they had their own agenda, and whatever their unknown goals were, they seemed to want her alive. For now.

The sensation of being watched faded away, and Black Widow met up with Bruce, Laura, and Wanda, a few minutes later.

 **XXX**

 **Author Notes:**

 **The death of Ross is done in thanks to** **.** **who made the request, and the idea of Ross dying ingloriously to a single-appearance OC amuses me. Yeessss…**

 **-0-**

 **Please Review and I will get back to you!**


	36. Escape

For better or worse, Marvel owns all of this stuff, not me.

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Many thanks to my wonderful Betas, Bobbie23 and MasterQwertster! Along with help from theicemenace and KaydenceRei. Be sure to check out their stories!

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Chapter 36: Escape

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 _Previously: US military personnel were onsite to investigate –accurate, yet planted— evidence that Natasha had killed their fellow soldiers. Meanwhile, their pawns infiltrated the Avenger's Headquarters using the sole sample of Pym Particles HYDRA had originally stolen._

 _The_ _Appendix's mercenaries infiltrated Avenger Headquarters to re-brainwash Bucky Barnes into the Winter Soldier, while planting bombs. In the ensuing chaos, Bucky was killed by War Machine, with Captain America trying to kill him in retaliation. Iron Man and Lady Sif arrived shortly after, with the latter taking Captain America and successfully escaping. Falcon was caught in an explosion, while Vision was unharmed. Many US soldiers were also killed or wounded by explosives concealed by Pym Particles until they re-grew in size to detonate. Bruce, Natasha, and Wanda successfully escaped, but came upon several squads of soldiers killed by a single, unknown assailant who apparently wanted them to escape._

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" _The world is not always good. I tell the stories to make them feel better. I tell the stories to make myself feel better, too. They are children. They are innocents. And innocents I wish them to remain. At least a while longer. I wish all children could remain so."_

-Volstagg (Earth-616)

"Fear Itself: Journey into Mystery," by Kieron Gillen, 2011

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Avenger's Headquarters

(former)

Twenty-four hours after the death of Bucky Barnes

The home and fortress of the Avengers collapsed in on itself, the fire beyond control, gutting the building.

Whoever had bombed this place and his soldiers –and one General Glenn Talbot _knew_ that someone was both attacking and framing the Avengers for said attack- had somehow placed a series of explosives and incendiary devices throughout the complex and surrounding field.

Many of the Avenger's (surviving) support and security staff had been evacuated, with the main holdup sadly being how they were waiting for Captain America to return and confirm it was all safe. Impatient, Iron Man had just ripped down the door, gestured at the ensuing fire, and started to stomp towards the exit he had cleared.

Steve Roger's current location was still unknown.

Fortunately, they had gotten the message before he had to double-back and carry them all out.

The SHIELD agents masquerading as Stark Industries employees –or whatever their paperwork said— were all in custody right now. Every one of them from Maria Hill herself down to the lowliest janitor were keeping quiet; which, given the circumstances, might be wise of them. They were cooperating only so their wounded receive medical care, or contacting the next of kin as needed.

(On a side note, Talbot was unsure whether he was unnerved or intrigued by the idea of having a custodial staff who were all trained in espionage, counter-espionage, and how to use each and every one of their cleaning supplies to kill someone in at least five different ways).

The only clues as to what had happened here was a single, unexploded incendiary bomb Iron Man discovered while searching for more wounded. The newly re-enlisted (since the alternative would have been conscription) Avenger was convinced that it was Steve Rogers who had disarmed it, and Talbot was willing to take his word for it. Already both of them were trying to figure out what had really happened.

It was already clearly evident that this had been the result of meticulous planning. Even Iron Man's personal AI had been compromised, something he had only discovered when he had called his 'Asset Manager' Happy Hogan, and told the man to investigate Stark Tower in person. A task the man seemed to embrace with gusto, given the excitement in the mans' voice.

An autopsy of Bucky Barnes, backed up by the disgusting writing on his chest— had confirmed that he had been under mind control. Still, given how Colonel Rhodes had come across him shooting at Captain America while leveling a grenade launcher, both Talbot and Stark reassured him he made the correct judgment call. Now if only the man himself would come to accept it…

Regardless, Talbot, and (mostly) Stark and Vision, were investigating the bomb and whatever trace evidence could be found. Hopefully they could track down the true guilty parties.

Unfortunately, it was clear which way the political wind was shifting. The men and women who had expressed their doubts about the Avengers Initiative from the beginning, saw the opportunity to take the reins of those with fantastical abilities. Or those who were afraid, especially after the demonstration of otherworldly power at the Battle of Las Vegas, and wished to exert control over that which scared them.

That was not to say such individuals were in the majority for the US government. No, Talbot had more faith in those elected officials than that! To his immense concern those, who he had expected to be more even-minded and reasonable, were being surprisingly quiet or even supportive of government control over the Gifted and Empowered. When he voiced these anxieties to Stark, the man's response had been as if he half-expected it. A few further dark hints from the mechanic, also left Talbot concerned that blackmail was influencing people at the highest levels of government.

The man was clearly keeping more secrets than just that, but Talbot was unsure of how to pry them out.

So as much as it disgusted one General Glenn Talbot, it was apparent that any 'irregularities' which were reported, would be swept under the rug.

Within twenty-four hours of this catastrophe, it had been quietly yet unequivocally made clear that the Avengers who did not immediately sign the Sokovia Accords would be charged with attacking the military in a cowardly ambush upon their arrival at Avenger's Headquarters. That Steve Rogers and the others who fled were now being considered fugitives, as their absence only proved their guilt in the murder of US soldiers in Las Vegas, which Talbot and his boys and girls had been sent to inquire about.

As for the 'chief murderess' in question, Natasha Romanoff, along with Bruce Banner and Wanda Maximoff, were in the wind, they would be saddled with the additional charges of killing those poor squads under Talbot's command. Stark and Rhodes were adamant they were innocent of that spree of deaths, that for all their skills they _could_ not have pulled that off in the manner those deaths had happened.

To the disgust of all three of them however, it did not matter. The government wanted scapegoats, examples, and solutions, and they wanted them _now_. This would provide all of that.

To make things worse was discovering the corpse of the missing Lieutenant General Thaddeus Ross of the US military, whose presence was _apparently_ a complete surprise to Rhodes, Vision, or anyone else who had lived in the compound. To all appearances the man –who Talbot was willing to concede was a Class-A Jerk— had been incarcerated illegally, which was something Steve Rogers or Natasha Romanoff would have to answer for, regardless of if they were cleared of every other charge.

 _No, the most I can do for them, along with Stark and everyone else, is keep it quiet about that little girl Romanoff had with her…_

 _Best of luck to you people. You've still got a lot to answer for, but I'm sure there's a lot you_ are _innocent of. Hopefully you'll be able to prove it, and just maybe you'll fair better than us at finding who's responsible for all this death and misery._

Talbot almost pitied the poor fools who had undoubtedly succeeded in making both the Black Widow and Hulk violently angry at them.

Sitting at his desk in his field tent, Talbot grimaced as he read a report reminding him of another tragedy. Amongst the fatalities had been Doctor Erik Selvig, the Director of SWORD, and a respected scientist.

Tony Stark had been weirdly insistent in confirming Selvig's fate, and if his brain was intact…

 **XXX**

Siberia

Appendix Headquarters

Robert Banner raged and cursed, using words Helmut Zemo had never even heard before, or made no sense in the context. _Maybe they become curses in that alternate future? I almost feel sorry for Nick Fury that his name becomes slander. Now it if were Stark's name…_

Phillip Coulson was going through his laptop with an intense expression as his fingers flew over the keyboard _. I guess he never really adapted to touch screens_ , Zemo thought. Of course, the Sokovian was self-aware enough to know he was trying to distract himself. After all, in investigating a mistake _they_ had apparently made, they might uncover _Zemo's_ own sabotage. Like how Romanoff and her child had never received any warning before the communications were jammed. _Just a few minor changes to the orders they might miss, especially given how the whole infiltration team was predictably killed by the Avengers. But they'd never believe it was an accident._

"Why are you concerned about this Selvig dying?" Zemo asked out loud.

Robert just screamed another foul sentence, while Coulson looked up from his work—safely distracted from digging deeper. "Multiple times Dr. Erik Selvig's mind was exposed to objects known as Infinity Stones. Consequently, he had some vital secrets buried in his subconscious. Accessing them was essential to helping us build a game-changer to challenge Thanos."

 _Careful, careful_ , Zemo cautioned himself, struggling to keep his expression perfectly composed. _Or you'll provoke them into shooting you_. "And you believed he would not be caught up enough in the Avenger's battles to be endangered."

 _Which makes you both_ stupider _than I ever imagined_ , was what Zemo _wanted_ to say. _Or is it just that your fixation upon the Avengers –because he_ wasn't _an Avenger— makes you just that_ blind? _Whatever the answer, the fact remains that you failed to either secure or protect a vital strategic resource that you_ knew about! _No_ wonder _Thanos conquered the future with geniuses like you around!_

"That is what the INSIGHT program told us," Coulson groused. "Even when the Avengers started deviating from the predictive algorithms…well, predicted, we thought we knew him well enough that he'd stay away from the mess at Avenger's Headquarters. Now he went and got himself killed."

After all, it was hardly the Appendix's fault that Selvig placed himself squarely in front of the killer they were responsible for brainwashing.

"Instead of worrying about that, we should focus upon the government," Zemo said. "The US, and all the other nations pressuring them to make it happen, are going to have Stark and the others touted as the loyal, true heroes of the world. You may have blackmailed them into pushing your agenda," –using either the traditional forms of coercion, or threats to unleash advanced scientific knowledge to the general public or enemies of America— "but now you've got to focus on making it stick. Including in the eyes of the public.

"As for Captain America, Black Widow, and the rest, we don't have the resources to find them, so we've got to be sure we monitor any alerts or relevant communications, so that we know where they are as soon as anyone else does. And have the necessary steps in place to handle whatever happens."

Coulson hesitated, still wanting to find out where they had failed, when Robert decisively took that choice away from him. The scientist picked up the laptop and threw it against a wall. "He's right. We can't mope around about what went wrong any longer. We've got work to do."  
Biting his tongue for an instant, eyeing his laptop for any damage, Coulson nodded. "I'll need my laptop back, to start."

Freezing, Robert glanced at where he had chucked it. "Oh, right. Um, sorry?" He picked it up, and handed it back. Promptly the former SHIELD agent got to work.

Zemo breathed a mental sigh of relief—then realized just how close Robert had suddenly become. "I won't look for any clues that you may have endangered Laura," he whispered into Zemo's ear. "Nevertheless, in the future, I'd better never even _suspect_ that you're planning something cute. Am I clear?"

"Crystal," Zemo quietly replied. He knew that even if he had been innocent (which he was decidedly not), in this situation a clear affirmation was the only thing that would keep him alive.

"Good." Then Robert walked out of the room for whatever purpose, while Coulson acted as if nothing had happened.

Feeling a chill come over him, Zemo began to wonder once more just what he had gotten himself into. He also very, very carefully did not look over at the two cryogenic chambers resting to the side of the room.

They still looked like coffins, yet just half-an-hour ago he had caught sight of one of the occupants climbing back in. On Robert's orders.

 **XXX**

Somewhere in America

One Week Later

It was a busy street in the mid-sized American city, with a fair crowd surrounding the TVs displayed in one store window. No surprise there, for while the sound was muted, the words beside the news anchorwoman on the screen, as well as the text scrolling beneath her, said all that was necessary: " _Sokovia Accords enacted. Avengers under government mandate_."

" _Three members of the Avengers gone rogue: Bruce Banner the Hulk. Natasha Romanoff the Black Widow. Wanda Maximoff the Scarlet Witch. All to be considered highly dangerous and volatile_."

There was one gap in the murmuring group of people taking in the news. A bubble they were all struggling to stay out of.

A homeless man wrapped up in several layers of clothing despite how warm it was, which was especially regrettable given how much he simply _reeked_. It was highly improbable he had washed in the last few months, smelled of drugs, and even his own urine. Even as he –apparently— listened, he continued to mumble incomprehensibly to himself, while drool dangled from his mouth, amongst dirt, and grey stubble. Off to the side was a large shopping cart piled high with stuffed garbage bags, teddy bears, a long stick that theoretically could be used for self-defense by the hunched, grey-haired figure, rags, a few bottles, a single rubber ducky, and other things that people refused to try and recognize.

So, they ignored him as best as they could, and even a police car driving by decided to overlook him. Taking someone like that in was just begging to have to clean your car afterwards. Besides, he looked too harmless to be trouble.

A few minutes later the news started to repeat itself, he stumbled back to his cart, leaning on it as if he would fall without it, and started walking away.

As he went, he started to sing to himself. Predictably, he had a terrible voice, there was no tune, and he kept changing the lyrics from being about alien abductions, to wondering if he could get chicken nuggets from Donald Trump's garbage bin. The most irritating part was how he kept changing the pitch from high to low at random.

Everyone continued to give him a wide berth…which is why none of them noticed how every alternating word whenever his pitch dropped, could be used to spell out a sentence.

Of course, that was just ridiculous. No one could be that paranoid. Right?

 **XXX**

Wanda Maximoff was trying figure out how this had become her life.

Oh, not the part about how she had been experimented upon by a secret cult of neo-Nazis, fought an evil android alongside superheroes to save the world, and was now on the run from the authorities. If nothing else, various pieces of fiction provided a basic –if shaky— framework for her to get by.

It was not even –sort of— her present circumstances: riding in a shopping cart, with wire, garbage bags stretched out, and actual garbage creating a camouflaging shell around them for concealment.

Yes, Wanda, Natasha, and Laura were all stuffed into the shopping cart, underneath the 'garbage bags', while the homeless man pushing them was Bruce.

Laura was being kept quiet with a minor invention of Bruce's that would make him an instant billionaire if he ever patented it. Mini-headphones for her ears, an I-Phone for her to watch downloaded videos of silly animals doing silly things, but the pièce de résistance was a noise dampener near her mouth. It automatically made it so that a shrill scream for attention made just as much noise as a giggle of humour as dogs in police hats saved the day. Invented after the near catastrophe in Las Vegas when Natasha had to carry Laura around with her, it made sure that the little girl was never too loud while on the run. The potential for other parents to abuse it, luxuriate in their children being silent, was why Bruce had not marketed it.

As for Natasha, she was using her Stark Industries I-Pad to remotely hack into various government databases. While apparently simultaneously keeping track of Bruce's coded messages disguised as a mad man's song. Wanda had given up trying to keep up with it, a few blocks back.

No, what made Wanda so insecure about her life was how Natasha, her closest lady-friend and honourary aunt, kept _samples_ of her husband's urine in safe houses around the world, so that she could quickly _spray it on his clothes_.

Why his own urine and not someone else's? (Not that Wanda had asked, Natasha had just volunteered that 'tip'). Because it "helped sell the act."

This was Wanda's life now.

Then something shifted with Natasha – _No, that's not her right now_ , Wanda instinctively knew— as she worked. Her expression did not change, nor did her fingers so much as hesitate as they flew over the electronic keyboard. Yet Wanda knew there was a peculiar hardening –an icy thing, more sensed than seen—in the Black Widow's eyes.

Something that made her very glad to not be the cause of it, and within the tight confines of the cart, Wanda pulled Laura a little closer towards herself.

Yes, this was their life now.

 **XXX**

A few hours later, Bruce made his way to an abandoned warehouse, where undesirables were kept out by a grim door, and a thick, solid padlock. Even bolt cutters would be intimidated by it. However, a little work with some slim tools his wife had taught him and the other Avengers to use, and it opened.

Still in disguise, he made his way through the building until he reached the back, his senses on edge. Finally, he reached the closet that had been described to him, and after fumbling with the fake floor, found the hidden lock. He lifted up the trap door on well-oiled hinges, revealing a hole and ladder leading down. "We're here," he said normally, starting to detach the concealing shell.

As the ladies and girl awkwardly got out, stretching limbs that had been immobile for too long, Bruce patiently waited. It was not as if he were insecure about his appearance; when he had been on the run years ago, he had been a homeless person at least a dozen times. In fact, this time his appearance was far more detailed than anything he ever used before. His shirt under the first coat had several collars sewn into it, making it look like he had several layers on. The stubble was natural since it grew quickly, and something resembling vegetable oil in his hair made it greasy. He just kept his distance since he doubted they would appreciate his new aroma.

Of course, underneath everything Bruce was wearing, he still wore that special prototype armour of Tony's. The primary function of which was to ensure watchers did not realize they were wearing full-body armour.

A few minutes later, they were in the concealed basement, clearly dug by hand-tools.

"So old," noted Wanda in curiosity. "Where are we?"

"One of the original Black Widows made this," Natasha explained. "It was one of her personal safe houses while on assignment to America. She had to lay low at one point, so she spent her time digging. She later told me about it." Nodding, Wanda accepted this. Meanwhile, Bruce was doing maintenance on the armour, including toweling off the worst of his disguise so that it did not stink up the place.

Since it was clear that Wanda was still on edge, Natasha refrained from elaborating that said former Black Widow had tried to defect after her handler betrayed her. One of newest generation of Black Widows, Natasha had been dispatched to hunt her down, with orders to drain the traitor of every secret, and then execute her. After Natasha successfully accomplished her mission, she had 'forgotten' to report some of those little tidbits she learnt.

She was the last Black Widow now.

On cue, she slipped back into that persona as Bruce rejoined them.

"This situation is pretty awful," Black Widow bluntly began. "Rhodes killed Bucky, and then Steve tried to kill Rhodes. Somehow the Appendix must have gotten to Bucky, and reprogrammed him back into the Winter Soldier. Since we know HYDRA invented some increasingly sophisticated forms of mind control, and the Appendix seem to have their own, the only question is how they got to him. Even then, the government is theorizing it might have something to do with Pym Particles."

Bruce grimaced. "I'll have to take a look at your copies of those reports. If it is Pym Particles, if someone else besides Dr. Pym has figured out how to make them work, then we've got trouble. More trouble I mean."

Black Widow continued her briefing. "According to the files I hacked –and Tony's shut down all our passwords he knew about—it doesn't look good." Her tone remained level and composed, but the other two could still sense the emotions buried deep. "As the Director of SWORD, Selvig's death has been confirmed. Falcon has been hospitalized and is in a coma. Rhodes has already recovered, while Stark is taking charge, and fully cooperating with the government. As for the SHIELD agents, I don't have numbers on their casualties, but the survivors are all in custody.

"In essence, the Sokovia Accords have been passed by the American government with immediate effect, to be actioned with full force"  
There was silence amongst the adults for few heartbeats, before Wanda asked the obvious. "What about us then?"  
"Branded as deranged fugitives from the law, wanted for the mass murder of US soldiers," Black Widow flatly answered. "All three of us. They're including the dead ones we came across. Some of the reports I found indicate some military personnel, like General Talbot, are skeptical, while the politicians, either out of panic or greed, are jumping on this to call for our arrest. Lethal action authorized. They'll shoot first, then ask questions they already have answers for.

"If we're lucky, it will be Tony and the other Avengers who find us first, and even they'll be ordered to turn us in. I doubt we'll find the accommodations comfortable."

Having said that, Black Widow turned her attention to checking the condition of the weapons she stored here. She already absorbed this unfortunate turn of events, and was sure she knew what they had to do. Selvig had been a friend and lab partner for Bruce, staying over for dinner with the Avengers several times, and had been well liked. Natasha had just been starting to truly let Bucky into the circle of their growing family as well, and he had been killed in what must have been his worst nightmare. Steve was doubtlessly tearing himself apart in emotional anguish over what had happened. Likely dozens of SHIELD agents, men and women she had worked and lived with, were dead. Finally, their home had been violated and destroyed.

The Black Widow felt these things hurt her, if not as much as Natasha Romanoff-Banner. Dividing herself into separate personalities, similar to Bruce with the Hulk was _possibly_ unhealthy, but she refused to let that stop her. It would be her fuel, the stone that whetted the blade of the knife she would shove into the spines of those responsible.

Once the others came to terms with everything, they could discuss it. As for Laura, she was already sound asleep atop a cot.

"Natasha," Wanda hesitantly began, "had an idea. While we were in the cart."

She explained it briefly, and did not need to elaborate. Bruce quickly figured out the rest, and pondered the pros and cons. "That should work. At the very least it'll take them," –with 'them' now covering evil time travelers, the government, and their own friends— "by surprise."

"How do we get there?" Wanda asked. They had travelled by foot and car after leaving the compound, stealing and changing cars several times to throw off the scent. Once they reached one of Natasha's safe houses she was sure neither SHIELD nor Tony knew about, they started wearing various disguises, with the bit as the homeless man merely being the most recent. At one point they had travelled cross-country in a cramped taxi, with Bruce wearing a bald wig, and Natasha using make-up to possess captivating blue eyes and blonde hair. She had played the role as 'Frank's' third and significantly younger wife, and a bit of a ditz at that. Wanda had been 'Frank's' put-upon, effeminate son, taking 'his' daughter to visit the little girl's mother, and see other family in the area for a birthday party.

Wanda had sworn bloody vengeance if the married couple ever said _anything_ about her time as 'Wade.'

Bruce agreed, citing he wanted to repress all memories of Natasha speaking in that sickening-sweet tone.

Natasha just laughed.

"We'll have to go by sea," Natasha announced. "I can't get all four of us through airport security."

"Don't you have any faster means of transportation?" Wanda wondered.

"We do," Natasha admitted. "Unfortunately, the ones in America Tony either knows about, or are too close to cities where FRIDAY might detect us. Or SHIELD for that matter. And we've got to stay away from Tony and the others so as to prevent any crisis of conscience for them, for their own sakes. They have to be able to honestly tell any government officials they have absolutely no idea where we are; pure plausible deniability. Again, on my own I could manage it, but we're not separating anymore unless absolutely necessary. So safer is better. Once we get across the ocean however, I've got more options available throughout Europe and Africa."

"When do we leave?" Bruce queried. Then he gave a sad smile. "And I am going to be wearing the urine next time?"

Wanda groaned and buried her head in her hands.

And prayed that Natasha did not have any ' _Scarlet Witch Samples_.'

That was the problem with super-spies: you never knew.

 **XXX**

Barton Farm

Clint Barton very pointedly did not immediately leap up and run for his gear once the fate of the Avengers broke over the TV news. He had also not done that earlier, when they first reported that Natasha was being accused of killing US soldiers.

Amateurs rushed in like that.

Hawkeye was a super-spy who survived to reach retirement, rare for someone in this profession. And guess what? He liked it.

He just sat on his couch, eyes staring out at nothing as he calmly and coolly assembled together the facts in his mind. What potential actions the players involved might take. The resources available to him.

For the entire week he had been like this, sitting there. At regular intervals food was placed before him to eat with automatic reflex. When it got dark, a blanket covered him up against the chill.

Throughout this, three pairs of eyes watched him expectantly for both direction, and for reassurance that things were not as dire as they appeared for their beloved aunt and sister-in-law. Nathaniel was mainly confused about the lack of attention from his father, but Cooper and Lila entertained him while trying to explain. Copper had seen his super-awesome dad get like this over a dozen times, so he was a pro at this. Lila had only experienced it four times, but she understood.

As for Laura Barton herself, her gaze also held love for her husband. Hawkeye was a legendary agent, the only one besides Natasha who SHIELD sent out on missions without an extraction plan because they were just that good. This glowing prestige blinded many however to the sheer amount of planning Clint put into an op, to ensure he could come back home again.

Which was not to say he did not fail to improvise like crazy once he was on the scene. One time when he inexplicably threw every piece of info and strategy aside to approach a certain redheaded assassin came to mind…

Clint loved his family more. Natasha was family, as were her kid and husband. Leaping in without a plan would do nothing to help. Moreover, if Tony actually was cooperating with the government, then there was probably a Stark Industries satellite fixated above the Barton Farm right this instant.

 _Tony'll keep quiet about my family_ , Clint thought with professional detachment. _At the same time, he'll expect me to do something to help Nat. Probably figure he can tail me or something. Problem is, she was quite serious about me being retired, and only told me a few of her contingencies._

Still, he could make a few assumptions. Only one man knew Natasha Romanoff-Banner better than him after all, and he had a few suspicions about what she was up to. He also had some disposable satellite phones that one Tony Stark guaranteed were untraceable and impossible to listen in on (which Natasha confirmed by hacking the records, and then had Bruce look at). And then there were those dead drops he knew about…

Laura Barton and their kids relaxed as they saw Clint's slowly blooming smile.

 **XXX**

Freighter crossing the Atlantic Ocean, leaving North America

A few days later

Uncharacteristically, Bruce found himself almost aroused by how near-perfectly Natasha had gotten them out of the US.

Predictably, port security had had them on a watch list, yet there was only so much manpower that the government could spread across the east coast—especially since they did not know if the 'rogue Avengers' were trying to leave the country. What Natasha had casually done was hack bank accounts to compare deposits, and snoop around until she found a deliberate hole in the port's own security as a particular freighter was arriving; almost as if certain custom officials had been paid to look the other way, and divert those less 'cooperative.' Slipping aboard, she found that it was crewed by modern-day human traffickers.

They never saw her coming.

Currently, the slavers were languishing in their own former cages, living off the same scraps they fed their captives. Upon reaching shore, Wanda would mess with their memories so they would not remember anything. Coupled with the darkness, grime, and how their rations would be withheld for the last few days of the trip, law enforcement on the other end would not be suspicious of how disorientated the prisoners were. If the police cared to ask. Bruce was unsure of what the sentence for slavery was for where they were going, but he doubted it would be pretty.

 _Almost makes you wonder if it would have been faster and more merciful for her to just kill them when taking the ship._

 _No! Never think that. We're Avengers, not Executioners. We don't have the right to take lives when we have alternatives!_

The freed slaves had been absolutely grateful towards the Avengers. Especially when the few who spoke enough English learnt that Natasha could pilot the freighter back to where they had come from. The first few days with every member of the enthusiastic crew 'learning the ropes' had been exhausting of course. Regardless, none of the people they rescued was going to rat them out on the other side.

Well, there had been one exception. A sleazebag who Natasha had been sure would have sold their location for the right price. Nevertheless, a nighttime visit from the Black Widow had removed his spine.

(Metaphorically; she just left him permanently cowed in terms of the Avengers. With Natasha, it was important to be specific).

 **XXX**

"Guhh," Natasha groaned as she collapsed exhausted onto her cot in the captain's cabin. She had taken it from the original owner, and no one disputed her claim.

"Forgetting that you're not superhuman?" Bruce gently chided, as he held up a cup of coffee, just out of her reach.

"If you weren't cute, I'd hurt you to get that," she threatened.

"Where do you think Laura got her looks from?"

Snorting, she levered herself upright to snag the coffee. She knew he was right in his wordless reminder that it if she took a nap now, she would never get to sleep tonight—especially since Laura was finally no longer waking them up. It was sweet how he worried, without being blatant about it.

Wanda volunteered to look after their little girl for now, since they both seemed to like looking at the waves.

"What've you been working on, when not serving as the ship's doctor or looking after Laura?" Natasha asked her husband.

He held out a small tablet, which projected a hologram to display a newer version of her Widow Bites. She took one look at it and shook her head. "No."

"But—!"

"Sorry Bruce, but no. You can't cram that much into them without making them too heavy for me. Being able to move quicker is more important than being able to outgun them." Whatever else you could say about Tony Stark, he instinctively understood the Avenger's individual needs for their weapons. Any adjustments he was asked to make by those he gave them to, were either very rare, or very minor. "As you said, I'm not super-human. To work with all that, I'd have to replace my arms with prostheses. And that'd be a bad thing," she added with a light glower as she caught the interest in his eyes.

Bruce glanced away, a little ashamed at that. "Yes, I'm sorry."

"Don't be in terms of the Widow Bites. I appreciate the thought. As for having metal hands and arms, I like my body just fine thank you." Then she set her cup down, and gently caressed his face. "And so should you," she purred, now stretching out further so his face was running across her wrists and inner arms.

He leant forward to kiss her. It was neither a chaste nor hungry, but born from intimacy and confidence in the gesture. The knowledge that she wanted it, and was holding him as much as he was holding her. A man kissing his wife.

Natasha fell back into the bed, pulling Bruce down with her as they continued to kiss and clutch onto one another. While their relationship was not sexual –to Tony's everlasting confusion, which was exacerbated by how Natasha delighted in making sex jokes towards Bruce, particularly BDSM ones— the touch and feel of one another was still something they cherished.

Especially in times like now.

Hunted by the world, with darker enemies in the shadows. The nebulous yet intimidating threat of Thanos on the horizon. Every moment they courted death together.

Alas, they were both strictly monogamous, and uninterested in a relationship with the Grim Reaper.

Joviality aside, once more they were on the run, except this time it was together. To further complicate matters, with Wanda and Laura in tow. While the young woman was more than capable of taking care of herself (or taking on a whole army for that matter), she was still a friend and adoptive family, and as much as she tried to hide it, Bruce could tell she was as nervous as any of them.

 _She deserves better than this. Wanda's barely in her twenties. She should be worrying about boys, university, not any of this. The world seems to keep giving her a bad hand…_

"We could just hide. Disappear," Bruce suddenly said, even as he already knew the answer.

"Bruce," Natasha whispered. "I love you. And I love you even more for wanting to give me the chance; but we both know that's not in the cards for us. You're too smart to think hiding in some cave and sticking our heads in the ground will solve anything, not with the enemies we're up against.

"As for me," and her beautiful face was twisted by cold, ugly smile, "I'm too much of a predator. I'll only run for so long as it takes me to wear my pursuers out, and to find the best chance to ambush them. That's how I've survived."

She felt him stiffen briefly at her appearance, before clutching her tighter. "I know. I, I just had to ask."

"I just said that, Dork," she reminded him as she ruffled his hair. "Just as I know you love me for all my flaws."

"Well, how could I pass up on a woman willing to overlook my own," he joked.

"Not overlook them," Natasha Romanoff-Banner gently reprimanded. "See them, accept them. Love them as a part of you, because they _are_ a part of you. As you do for me."

"You're a fighter, Natasha," and one hand came up to gently stroke her cheek. "You never give up. Ever. That's who you are. I just worry how much we'll have to pay for victory this time. I couldn't let you do this without giving you another chance (option). Sometimes how far you're willing to go unnerves me, but it'll never stop me from loving you."

They exchanged a quick peck to the lips.

Then she gave him a harder glare. "And we've been over this sappy exchanging of feelings before. We _know_ we feel this way about each other. So, what's really eating you up?"

"Guilty as charged," he confessed, although he still had not let go. "It's just that I…" He hesitated, and Natasha squeezed him tighter, unwilling to let him go; encouraging him to open up to her. Whatever it was, she would listen.

"It's not about Robert," she mused, to both prompt and further reassure him. "I'm sure by now you've gotten the message that your evil doppelganger is _not you_. Soooo…"

He briefly pinched her side. "I _am_ aware your second favourite interrogation technique is to make them think you know more than you really do, leading them into saying things they believe are harmless."

"Well, playing the helpless damsel won't fool you," she said while barring her teeth, harmless as humour danced in her eyes.

He snorted, then outright chuckled, and Natasha felt more tension leaving his body. _Good_ , she thought, especially as started to caress her sides.

Finally, he fessed up. "You're right, but I just wanted to say all of that to you again. And hear you say it to me. Especially given what's going to happen next."

It took Natasha a few heartbeats to figure it out, and then the bloody organ nearly melted.

She pulled him in for a long searing kiss, before pulling him into a deeper hug, her lips to his ear. "Thank you, and I'm sorry for asking you like that. You're right, what we're going to do…we're basically raising the stakes in the hope that we can win it big. While the other players are hiding cards up their sleeves and the house is against us. No one said it would be easy, but we won't run from it. We'll face it together."

"Yes, we will," Bruce whispered back into her ear, luxuriating in the feel of her strong arms holding him close. His hands slipped under her arms, for his fingers to awkwardly yet effectively massage her upper back. "It's the only way Laura can have a future. The only way we can really be parents for her. As things stand now, with the Avengers divided by men too insane to see what's really happening, and the threats to come, if we don't do something now, the whole _world's_ probably doomed.

"I just wish all of this wasn't resting on our shoulders. But with Steve missing, Tony too busy with damage control, and what we learnt about the others, we and Wanda are the only ones who can do it. So yes, I want to run, yet I know this is more important."

Rubbing his back, Natasha finished for him. "I love you Bruce, forever and always. And I'll say it again and again so you never forget."

"Dork," he chirped, before giving a high-pitched "Eeep!" as she started tickling him. "Mercy! Mercy!" he gasped out through laughter.

Laughing, she rolled him over and came down beside him, meeting his eyes. "You're the Dork, and don't you forget it!" she tried sternly say, but giggles kept bubbling through.

 _Oh, how I_ do _love this man_ , Natasha thought. _I've never been able to…relax and care like this before. Even with Cooper and Lily, I was afraid of breaking the kids. Bruce? Nothing can break him. He's the strongest one there is. He's indestructible._

"Besides," and now she could tell her husband was attempting a joke. "After all this, raising Laura to be an adult will be a piece of cake!"

Howling with mirth, Natasha slapped him on the stomach. "You wish! Never mind her as a teenager, stubborn as the two of us, asking to learn how to fight, can you imagine what she'll be like with 'Uncle Tony' spoiling her rotten when we're not looking!? She'll ask for a flying pony, and he'll hand her a book on genetic engineering while he goes to find out where he can do it legally!"

Bruce gaped in horror for a moment, before letting himself break into laughter too.

Oh well, he was a scientist, and he would hate for life to be boring.

 **XXX**

Death Valley, California, USA

The Passage was exactly where their Master Loki, had told them it would be.

SHIELD had tried to find it of course, with HYDRA following them. Alas for their efforts, not only was it hidden within a crevice, ruins carved into the rock ensure that no mortal eyes or their primitive machines could see it. The slaves of Loki however, the ones still under the influence of his Scepter when it possessed the Mind Stone, had finished crafting the devices as they had been instructed. Tools born from the genius of Loki, and the knowledge from within the Infinity Stones.

The final contingency if all hope was lost for ruling both Midgard and Asgard.

Again, a tingling at the back of their minds tried to voice how all they received was a status update, _not_ an order to set this in motion.

Once more, their concerns were answered.

" ** _Don't worry, it'll all work out. This is what he probably really intended. He'll be proud of how loyal you're being, carrying out this task for him. This will vanquish your Master's enemies, and he will love you all_** ," another voice soothingly whispered. Another, subtler layer of control beneath that of Loki's.

So, they listened to this wise advice and shook off their doubts, finishing their preparations. Unspoken amongst them, they all knew there was no going back.

Weapons ready, and the rest of their equipment ready to activate at a moment's notice, they stepped forward into the Passage.

One of the Secret Portals which allowed one to travel between the Nine Realms.

It would take some trial and error, but with this they would be able to reach _IT_.

 **XXX**

Over Two Weeks Later

"There yet~?" Laura said with a sing-song.

"It's 'Are we there yet?', sweetie," Wanda gently corrected.

"Please don't encourage her," Bruce sighed.

"No way! I'm aiming to be the cool aunt!"

"Pop quiz," Natasha called out. "How many lethal weapons are trained on us right now?"

"Uhm, weeeell," Scarlet Witch stalled as her eyes swept around.

Bruce also looked up at the mountain.

They were currently in Africa, leaving South Sudan after a series of relatively minor adventures, including dodging authorities without revealing their identities, side-tracking to handle a small criminal gang because both Bruce and Wanda refused to let them keep selling drugs to minors, dispatching a terrorist cell that stumbled upon them, and Natasha remotely activating computers back in the US that would send out electronic 'clues' to keep both Bruce's Science Bro and the Appendix busy.

They had also passed on Robert's warning about Thanos to Tony.

"Does the whole mountain count as one?" he hazarded.

"If you want to, but there's still…fifty-three," Natasha answered, before checking her wrist computer. "No, I lied, sixty-two."

"Impressive. And yet you did not take the warning," said a voice that commanded both attention and respect.

None of the Avengers reacted to the presence of someone suddenly beside them. Their only response was to calmly turn around to regard him. On guard, yet not aggressive.

While it was only one man, even if one disregarded the number of defenses this place had, it was obvious he was not alone.

"Oh goody," Natasha smiled. "You're back from your little vacation in America as a vigilante. This does make it easier."

"Why are you here?" he asked, covered head-to-toe. There was no hint of surprise at her ability to identify him, or her knowledge of his activities.

"Oh relax, we're not here for asylum," Natasha said as she continued to be the spokesperson. "We're just here to tell you a couple of things about what's been going on in the world. Then your own scientists and spies can tell you that we're telling the truth, and you'll realize we've come to help save your people. King T'Challa of Wakanda, the Black Panther."

 **XXX**

Barton Farm

Rolling out of bed, Hawkeye picked up his bow as he heard the sound of the approaching jet.

 _Time to get to work_ …

 **XXX**

 **Author Notes:**

 **Inspiration for how to go undercover as a homeless person from "Stiletto" by Daniel O'Malley.**

 **-0-**

 **Next Chapter: 'Stepping Up'**

 **-0-**

 **Please Review, and I will get back to you!**


	37. Stepping Up

For better or worse, Marvel owns all of this stuff, not me.

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Many thanks to my wonderful Betas, Bobbie23 and MasterQwertster, who write some pretty cool stories. Go read them!

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Chapter 37: Stepping Up

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 **I should note that some of my stuff for the people of Wakanda here is based upon what I wrote before Captain America: Civil War came out. I have also intentionally not seen any of the Black Panther movie trailers, because I want everything to be a surprise when I see it in theatres.**

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 _Previously:_

 _Following the attack upon Wakanda by the Abomination (who was secretly controlled by the Appendix), the advanced nation's king, T'Challa the Black Panther, went to America to go undercover as a hero, so as to be recruited by the Avengers. Before doing so, he made contact with his sister, a mole in SHIELD with the identity of 'Amanda Waller.'_

 _Later, the Appendix launched an attack on Avenger's Headquarters which left Bucky Barnes dead, and the Avengers either missing, hospitalized, working with government, or on the run while accused of serious crimes. Of the last group, Bruce and Natasha Romanoff-Banner, their daughter Laura, and Wanda Maximoff, set in motion a new plan. As part of this, they made their way to Wakanda…_

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 _"_ _I'd do anything to protect the family. And I have. Judge me as you will."_

— The Old Man, "Luba and Her Family," by Gilbert Hernandez

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Wakanda

"Oh relax, we're not here for asylum," Natasha said as she continued to be the spokesperson. "We're just here to tell you a couple of things about what's been going on in the world. Then your own scientists and spies can tell you that we're telling the truth, and you'll realize we've come to help save your people. King T'Challa of Wakanda, the Black Panther."

"A bold claim," T'Challa simply said. No skepticism or support in his tone.

Bruce held up a USB drive, and awkwardly waved it at the monarch. "It's all here. Uhm, how do I give it to you?"  
Fearlessly, the Black Panther stalked forward and politely accepted it. Then without a word he walked away. "You will go no further up the mountain," he said over his shoulder, just before disappearing around a jutting rock.

Wanda looked down at the narrow, rough and pointy trail they had climbed. "See anywhere good to sit down?"

"Oh," Natasha sweetly said, "I was thinking we could climb all the way back down. For the exercise."

"No," Wanda flatly said, while Bruce pointedly abstained.

"Wanda, Wanda," Natasha mock scolded. "You've become too pampered by the idolatry and flabby American lifestyle."  
"Thank you, I enjoy it very much."

 **XXX**

Wakanda

Forward Security Outpost #3

Head Office

T'Challa did not even bother looking at the files until his security experts had finished checking for any software traps. The hardware the information was being read from was isolated, and would be destroyed afterwards to prevent any lingering surprises.

 _Although a proper spy is one who can be dangerous even when wielding solely truth itself_ , he thought with a touch of philosophy.

There was certainly a level of risk associating with these foreigners, yet it was worth it to learn more of what had happened with the Avengers. T'Challa had been hoping that the Sokovia Accords would not be passed, as they would grant greater powers to the US government. Now however they were in full force, while those who might have opposed it were on the run and branded as dangerous criminals—with three of them on his doorstep…

They seemed like fundamentally decent people, genuinely believing their methods would make the world a better place. It would be a shame to be forced to punish and evict them.

The majority of Wakanda's scientists, who including T'Challa himself, were uncharacteristically excited to meet _the_ Doctor Bruce Banner. For all the Outside world's own advancements generally trailed behind Wakanda's, there was a good reason the man was held in the same esteem as Darwin, Einstein, Tesla, and Newton. Banner's breakthroughs had created ripples of shock even here, opening up frontiers previously believed to be impossible.

While speaking of Banner, of course there was also that not-so minor detail of the Hulk.

The Abomination's attack –by a man so blinded by his need for power he had willingly irradiated his body— had killed many of T'Challa's people. Including his own father, T'Chaka, who only two days earlier had retired the crown and mantle of Black Panther to his son. Wakanda's military possessed weapons they believed could kill similar beasts, but they could not guarantee they would work in practice. Emil Blonsky's head had inexplicably exploded, and returned to human, with nothing remaining of the secret of his transformation. Scant traces of nanobots hinted at how this cover-up was accomplished.

Regardless, it would be reckless to assault the Hulk without him/it first giving sufficient provocation _. I'll ask nicely once for them to leave, and if that fails we attack_.

"Your Majesty, we're ready," reported one officer. Several senior members of the military were present, and holograms permitted others back at the Royal Palace to read from afar, allowing them to participate in real-time, without risking transmitting any of the potential viruses on the USB.

"Very well then, let's begin," he ordered with the authority of the Black Panther. It would be rude to send the rogue Avengers on their way without at least looking at what they had brought. _Who knows, their cryptic warnings may even present something of value. Something that I can justify giving them some measure of thanks and reward._

 **XXX**

Outside on the Mountain

"Do you actually _like_ , combat rations?" groused Wanda.

"Had worse, last long," chorused Bruce and Natasha, before glancing at each other in happy surprise.

"Ugh," the young woman groaned. "As soon as this is over, I'm going on a vacation away from you sappy pair. Whatever happened to the heartless assassin and scientist with crippling anxiety and anger issues? What happened to them? Why'm I left with you two?"

They all broke out laughing after that, while Laura got to eat a banana –her parents were not so mean as to make her eat MRE's stashed away by her mom while she was still working for the KGB.

"Hmm, that's right," mused Natasha, with a knowing glint in her eyes. Realizing what was to come, Bruce ducked his head in embarrassment. "Now that Steve's found someone, we've got to find you a boyfriend. Or girlfriend."

Almost paling, Wanda quickly threw her loyal teammate to the wolves. "You should 'help' Sam first. He's older, and been alone too long."

"Yes, but he's not here. And thus, we must continue Operation: Virgin Sacrifice!"

Wanda was alone on a mountain with only a two-year old to save her, against her mortifying honourary aunt, with Bruce already making clear he was not getting involved. _How is this my life now!?_ she wailed to herself.

Despite not understanding the situation, Laura laughed at the expression on her 'aunty's' face.

 **XXX**

Forward Security Outpost #3

Head Office

There were many documents to go through, nevertheless what they found was more than enough to call forth the blood of warrior kings that raced through T'Challa. Boiling with a rage he had only felt once before.

Theories and supporting evidence on where the 'Appendix' had come from, and their goals.

Thanos and the threat he posed to the entire world, and his role in previous near-apocalyptic scenarios.

Details of political manipulations, and dozens of assassinations.

It was not all speculation by the Avengers, their raid upon the Appendix's own original base had allowed Vision to copy almost all of their files. The information within was too inflammatory for the Avengers to rashly publish it all on the public domain –their position being more tenuous than when they had done so for HYDRA. In the plans detailing the New York Accords however, it showed that they had planned a timed release of it, as proof of what they were really dealing with.

Worst of all, were the ones detailing how the Appendix had sent the Abomination against Wakanda, including videos of the event from the beast's own perspective. When it had deliberately targeted a school…

There was even a freeze frame for one scene –with T'Challa examining the software to verify it was done by the original owners, as opposed to naked calculation by Black Widow and her companions— allowing him to see the death of his own father. Killed in a failed attempt to save a young child.

Yes, that was what called forth his fury.

Hidden behind his mask, T'Challa took a few heartbeats to calm himself. The men and women with him needed his example to keep them from doing anything rash. Like trying to implement a nuclear assault in the vicinity of wherever they even _suspected_ these murderers could be found.

 **XXX**

Outside on the Mountain

Storming out to confront Black Widow and her cohorts, Black Panther cut himself short as he caught the ongoing conversation.

"—grown woman, and I don't need any help!" argued Wanda irritably. She was not 'angry' per say, since she knew at the core Natasha was not being malicious. Exactly. Teasing, yes. Still, while she was a single celebrity with superpowers, she had bigger priorities to worry about in her life right now.

Never mind making sure her theoretical boyfriend was not cheating on her, she was worried about living to see tomorrow!

"Growing up in Sokovia didn't mean I didn't have a love-life," Scarlet Witch growled. "And _no_ , if I wouldn't let Pietro interfere, I'm not letting you. And the consequences of trying to find out will be the same for you, super-assassin or not!"

It was pointless to try and keep secrets from her brother, given how much they were in each other's heads. Nevertheless, there were topics neither of them commented on, out of respect for their rights as an individual.

"Excuse me," Black Panther cut in testily. They all glanced at him, and he had an uncharacteristic feeling they were considering ignoring him to resume their little 'family time.' "After going over the evidence you've provided Us, Wakanda formerly offers you asylum, for the first time in Our history. Do please come inside, and We can discuss the matter of the Appendix further."

The three adults glanced at each other, and nodded. Then Bruce's 'skin' rippled, revealing he was wearing a futuristic set of armour that none of T'Challa's sensors had detected. Faceplate rising, Bruce smiled. "Sounds good."

Black Panther refused to show his surprise at this display of technology that caught _Wakandans_ defences off guard. Moreover, he recognized it as a display of trust, and patiently waited for them to clean up their lunch.

 **XXX**

Wakanda

(Within the Borders)

"It's beautiful," Wanda breathed.

Sokovia's mountains had been harsh and unyielding, and every plant was a proven survivor as they fought for nutrients against the cold and each other. Wakanda was lush and alive, its surrounding mountains enclosing like a gentle, warm embrace. In the center was a large city of tall, shining towers that was almost alien it was so advanced looking, as small vehicles flew through the air with a speed and grace that only Tony's suits and Quinjets could manage.

"Look at the layout," Bruce mused. "The way the streets are done is artistic, yet organized. This was built according to a centralized plan, not sprawling out as it grew like other places." He also wanted to speculate aloud about the flying vehicles, architecture, examine the plant life to determine if it was natural or engineered, etcetera. Alas, his wife had lectured him several times on limiting his barrage of questions until it was 'acceptable.' Whenever that would be.

"The real important stuff is underground," Natasha reminded Wanda. "After they made their satellites, they buried their military bases and laboratories so that when the Soviets and Americans eventually got theirs, they wouldn't see anything."

"Indeed," T'Challa said, as he stood beside them. He was still in the full regalia as the Black Panther. "The ignorance of imperialists has always been to our advantage. They see peace and beauty, and think us weak. Failing to understand the true meaning of strength does not lie in boastful displays of it."

"Mister?"

The king looked down at Laura, who was looking back at him without concern while tapping on his leg to get his attention. It was refreshing to see such innocence and acceptance, even in a child. "Yes, Ms. Romanoff-Banner?" _That_ little nugget had been surprising.

Pouting, the two-year-old put her hands on her hips. "Dat momma, not me. Me, Laura!" Then she hesitated and glanced at her parents, before adding, "Please?"

Snickering, Natasha did not quite trust herself to speak. For his part, Bruce gave Laura a proud pat on the shoulder.

While T'Challa's face was hidden, his entourage were torn between their own amusement and mild outrage at how their King was being addressed. Granted, the royal family had always been careful to maintain a close and open relationship with 'commoners,' but this girl was an outsider!

(If she were Wakandan, they would silently praise her for balancing her assertiveness with a politeness uncommon for her age. And be amused. As she was not Wakandan however, she had to meet higher standards).

"My apologies," T'Challa merely said. "What is it, Laura?"

She promptly stabbed her finger at one of the massive statues that stood imposingly nearby. "What's dat?"

"That, is a statue of a black panther, the guardian of our people," T'Challa answered.

"Huh?"  
"It's a big cat they like here," Wanda answered more simply.

"They care about it a lot," Bruce added. "So, this is how they show it."

"Oh, okay." Then Laura went back to skipping through the long grass as they walked to the city.

"Clearly I need to spend more time with children," T'Challa easily observed. "Although the Panther God knows the burden of the crown keeps me occupied as it is."

"I thought you didn't wear crowns here?" Natasha airily said.

"And I believe that for the sake of our mutual cooperation," Black Panther's voice took on an edge, "you shouldn't continue to make me wonder about how many of our secrets you know."

She shrugged. "Less than I like, given how we've turned up on your doorstep. You've always been good at keeping spies out, even when you've contacted weapons merchants and others beneficial to maintaining your advantage. It's with those agents you've sent to spy on us directly, that you've run into problems. The KGB and CIA both caught on to some of them, and independently decided it was better to observe your agents and learn from them. Later organizations like SHIELD continued this tradition, and from piecing together thousands of hours of observations and recordings, learnt more than you'd expect."

"Wait," Bruce perked up as he remembered something. "When Tony was telling us what he knew about Wakanda, while we were watching Blonksy's attack," –every one of the Wakandans, barring their King, tensed at that— "he never mentioned that. Why didn't you or Fury say anything?"

Once more Natasha shrugged her shoulders. "We had bigger concerns at the time, and Tony and Steve would have been distracted as they yelled at Fury for not keeping them up to date on the world's most technologically advanced nation. As for afterwards, I trusted Fury to handle things with Wakanda. Especially since the Avengers already had enough on their hands." She omitted how it was really Coulson they had expected to manage things after the attack by the Abomination.

"And your comment about me being a vigilante in America?" T'Challa probed.

"It was obvious Wakanda would have to make some sort of response afterwards," Natasha pointed out. "There were the anticipated responses by your spies of course, including Amanda Waller, your most senior ranking agent—"

 _Now_ there was the slightest reaction from Black Panther. _Interesting_ , Black Widow thought. _Maybe some sort of relationship between them?_

"—as they discreetly tried to learn more. Their fascination with news reports of a newly emerging street-level hero is what clued us in. Especially given the respect literally generations of your spies had paid to panthers in zoos."

 _I dare say there's going to be some heated words amongst their equivalent of senior intelligence management._ Out loud, Natasha finished, "The clincher was when I quietly investigated you on my own, to see if you were worth recruiting. Of course, that was your intent, wasn't it? To be recruited by the Avengers to get the inside scoop." –Which was a politer way of saying 'be a mole'— "You were very good, just not good enough." By some trick, she made it sound like a compliment; that it had taken someone of _her_ qualifications to sniff out his true intentions. "That, and Bruce and I were able to copy your computer files, and crack your encryptions."  
Instead of being upset, Black Panther pounced upon that last detail. "But you didn't have the rest of your Avengers help you? Not Tony Stark and his artificial intelligences?"

"No. We had other plans. And since the Appendix was making their move, we decided you were a wild card best left to your devices. I'm guessing that given how chaotic things have become, and that you've already noticed that some politicians are acting contrary to their usual policies, you decided that signing up for the Sokovia Accords was not the best idea for now? Or that it was more productive to slip home and figure out what really happened?"

"Among other things," was his vague response.

"Mommy?" Laura chirped.

"Yes, honey?"

"What you talking about?"

"Grown-up stuff. Sorry, are we boring you? Being silly?"

"Yes."  
"Alright, we'll wait until after we've found something else for you to do."

Humming to herself, Laura went back to looking at the scenery, until she felt a prompting tap from Wanda. "Uhm? Thanks?"

"Good girl," Natasha smiled, and knelt down to give a quick hug.

Laura beamed, and then pointed towards a pristine lake that was to the far right of Wakanda's capital. "Go there now!"

"No, sorry dear, it's too far away. We have to go to the city."

"Water! Please?"

"Ask later," Natasha compromised, knowing 'try later' was too ambiguous.

"Pleeeease?" Laura adorably pouted. "Now!"

With long practice, Bruce resisted the urge to pull out the I-Phone, with its noise dampener attachment. Instead, he started rifling through his depleted knapsack for something else to entertain his daughter.

 **XXX**

Royal Palace

Later

Despite ten _thousand_ years of violently keeping foreigners out of their borders, all of T'Challa's cabinet members remained quiet as he entered the room alone. Taking off his mask, he sat down in his plain chair.

It was an austere place, with simple chairs and table carved from wood, with miniature holo-emitters discreetly embedded in the latter, as well as the walls, while natural foliage surrounded them. While the artwork that decorated the walls was less impressive than what might be found in Western halls of power, T'Challa believed it more appropriate, since they were painted, drawn, or woven by the younger children of the clan elders represented here. Others were men and women who had proven themselves with their intelligence, competence, and/or unorthodox thinking. They were all loyal to the bone (and he had truth detectors to prove it), and none were so unwise as such to start shouting loud condemnations at him without having first also consulted the evidence. Nor did they dare assume that their King did not have a good reason for his unprecedented act.

"So," Black Panther smoothly began, "we are under attack from time travellers from a parallel universe. While the presented evidence of their origins is not concrete, we still have strong reason to believe they have already attacked us, attacked our _children_ ," and now there was something raw and dark in his tone. "Furthermore, we have hints of a worldwide extra-terrestrial threat that extends to Wakanda. How are we to proceed?"

"Use the outsiders as cat's paws," intoned the Chief of the Marsh Tribe, enjoying the 'Western' phrase, secure that it had been used in Wakanda first. "That must be what those refugees really want; they know our forces will never act upon their whim."

"No," growled S'Yan, T'Challa's paternal uncle. "That is the least of what we must do. Our military must be ready to deploy against this 'Appendix,' or 'Thanos.' Despite the risk, we must gather collaborating evidence. Given the strength of what we've already learnt however, it would also be prudent to begin our own hunt for intelligence on these time travellers. It's possible we can use this recently revealed failing of our own agents to lure them out.

"We risk a war with the West if they discover our agents doing so," warned W'Kabi. While his title, 'Chief of Wakandan Security,' was banal, he was effectively T'Challa's second-in-command. "Which is a serious concern if this Appendix really is so devoted to 'survival of the fittest.' What if their next step is to pit us and the Avengers against each other?"

"I do not believe so," T'Challa spoke up. "I believe that their intentions for Wakanda are what we have already done; interact with the world more. Fighting with the West may play a part in it, but for their endgame of defeating Thanos, they would desire for our technology and military to aid the Avengers." Smiling coldly, he observed, "Of course, there's just no need for them to survive to see it happen."

"Hmph," grunted Queen Mother Ramonda. The second wife of T'Chaka, she had been T'Challa's surrogate mother, and blood mother of Shuri. However, her position on the council was not down to nepotism. No accusations of such would be tolerated. Certainly not by the iron-willed, sharp-tongued woman! "I'm just waiting to hear what our 'guests,' the ones who've had all this time to think about this, and came all this way for a _reason_ , have to say. What do they want, and have you checked to be sure they're telling the truth?"

"Straight to the point," T'Challa warmly smiled. "Our passive detectors show that Dr. _Romanoff_ -Banner and Ms. Maximoff are telling the truth, although _Mrs_. Romanoff-Banner is infamous for beating even SHIELD's more advanced toys. As for what they have _suggested_ …"

 **XXX**

Two Days Later

"Well, I can't believe they agreed," Bruce muttered.

They were all standing in a wide, open courtyard of the royal palace. Laura was occupied with a Wakanda colouring book, studiously ignoring the adults.

"Oh, yea of little faith," Natasha smirked as she elbowed him. Of course, they were both aware Plan B involved the Other Guy, and running away very fast, but details!

"Once they had the identities of those responsible for attacking one of their children's schools," she went on, "and we promised we were willing to take care of them, they were happy to help."

"Uh huh," Bruce sceptically said. "No argument there. It's just what _else_ they were willing to help us with that was a surprise. Like unfettered access to their own labs." He gestured at Natasha's new catsuit, and latest version of Widow Bites. T'Challa himself contributed to them, and while they did not have the upgrades Bruce proposed to his wife earlier, they still had more than she expected while remaining lightweight.

(Bruce also removed the obligatory tracking devices, and related Wakandan 'contingencies')

"And then there's _this_ ," he emphasized while pointing at the approaching Quinjet.

For the first time in history, an American built aircraft was allowed to land within Wakanda.

Down the ramp they came, and Wanda was the first to react, throwing a hug around the one in front. "Clint!" she squealed in joy.

"How you doing?" Hawkeye warmly asked, as he hugged his surrogate daughter back.

Then Natasha joined in, embracing them both. Then the three of them crouched down to include Laura as she hurried over. Meanwhile Bruce stepped forward to address the others. "Thanks for coming."

Ant-Man, Wasp, and Spider-Man, all in full uniform.

"Thank Hawkeye," Ant-Man cheerfully said, his posture less wary than Wasp's. "He got a hold of us using one of your own internet dead-drops, and convinced us to assemble."  
"He put a good word in for you," Wasp pointedly added to Natasha and Co.

"Not that we believed those news reports about you," Spider-Man promised.

"We got to the Quinjet you hid away," Ant-Man went on. "And then Hawkeye here gave us directions to some farm he was crashing at, and we picked him up."

Clint's adoptive family immediately caught on. Doubtless 'some farm' was actually the Barton Farm, with him carefully suggesting they land at night time. The basement was insulated against passive scans that would pick up the wife and kids, and the dark would hide any further evidence that it was actually his home.

Choosing honesty as the best tool, Natasha got right to the meat of it. "The charges of me killing those soldiers in the US are true." The non-Avenger heroes stilled, yet she went on. "A general obsessed with Bruce, sent a black ops team after Laura and me, with the intention of abducting her to coerce my husband. The ones I left alive as a warning. Unfortunately, General Ross then chose to flood the building with regular soldiers. An EMP they had already set fried my comms and I couldn't call for help, and most of my nonlethal weapons were useless. I did what I did to protect my daughter, to neutralise the threat they posed to her. Then I tried to cover it up so no one would know. Judge me as you will."

The little girl in question cocked her head as her name was mentioned, and then walked away from the group hug she had been a part of, to continue her drawings. She could remember bits of what her mom was saying, and they made her uncomfortable. However, she was a _big girl_ , and would not make a scene now. She could do that later, and maybe her family would give her some more of the local goodies to make her feel better.

Sighing, Ant-Man thought of his own daughter, Cassie. He himself had killed someone who was an immediate danger to her. "I can't condemn you for that," he confessed. "Not when I've done the same. I'll trust that you had no other choice."

Wasp, who looked a little uncomfortable during the exchange, relaxed fractionally.

Spider-Man was the only one visibly upset by the idea of killing like that. That said, he also sympathised that a mother should never be put in such a dilemma. "And the rest?" he asked. "Was that the Appendix who killed those other soldiers they're blaming you for?"

"Probably," Bruce answered. "One of them, Robert, lured me out of the base with information on Thanos, and I threatened him into admitting they were responsible."

The others nodded, having already been fully briefed upon the Appendix, and the Avengers theories about them and the impending alien threat.

 **XXX**

Flashback

 _"_ _So, we're now your little trump card against the Appendix," Scott grumbled, but they could all tell his heart was not behind the statement._

 _"_ _I always liked to carry a small gun hidden on me," the Black Widow grinned. Then it bloomed into a smile that was warm, friendly, and more importantly one that they realized was for the first time 100%_ honest. _"Bruce and I first recruited you because we could tell you're as determined, skilled, resourceful, and most importantly having the same moral courage as any other Avenger._

 _"_ _When the Appendix finally makes their move," she continued, "you'll be our little surprise they won't see coming. And when this is all over, we'll be honoured to introduce you to Steve and the others." Not as eloquent as his wife, Bruce nodded in agreement._

 **XXX**

Present

"And that," Natasha said, "leads us to why we brought you—"

Ant-Man interrupted. "I'm in."

Natasha froze. "What?"

"Same here," Wasp smirked.

"Me three," Spider-Man said with a little wave.

Acting as the spokesman, Ant-Man elaborated. "You're talking about recruiting us for some super-hero team that'll exist _in addition_ to the Avengers," he stated. "As opposed to us joining them down the road. You're worried that right now the US government will be simultaneously too reactionary to peoples with powers, while too hesitant to deal with any serious problems; especially with the Appendix manipulating things, while being clearly insane.

"So, when something bad happens, and it will, the Avengers will be too constrained by the Accords to do anything, unless they break the laws themselves. And at the same time, you want us to prove to people that yes, heroes do still exist."

Bruce, Natasha, and Wanda looked a little dumbfounded, before turning to look at Hawkeye, who was looking decidedly smug. "Hey, don't look at me. They figured it all out on the ride over without my help. They're a bright bunch, that's why you recruited them after all. They've trusted you this far, and they're willing to go along with what comes next."

"Some details would be nice of course," Wasp hedged.

A light chuckle escaped Natasha, although she did not really try to fight it. Bruce gave an embarrassed smile, while Wanda gave the couple a knowing look. "Too used to being the smartest people in the room, yes?" Then she turned to the others. "It'll be illegal," she promised them. "At first for sure, and no guarantee we won't still be labelled as vigilantes in the end. After what's happened in Las Vegas and the Avenger's Headquarters, there will be a lot of people afraid of us."

"And if we mess up, they'll never stop being afraid of us," Natasha coolly warned, wanting to ensure that everyone went into this with their eyes wide open.

Wanda gave Natasha a sharp look, yet it was the Scarlet Witch who spoke. "I can't control their fear. Only my own. There's a threat to us all, and I won't run."

Smiling proudly, Clint nodded in approval. "Hear, hear."

"Although, I don't really want to play devil's advocate," Spider-Man chirped up. "But how sure are you that the Appendix will guarantee it the Avengers can't save the day from the coming threat on their own?"

"Because," Natasha hissed as she vented some of her cold fury, "they believe that all that matters to get through life is being more ruthless than anyone else." Everyone except Bruce, Clint, and Laura were unnerved now, sensing the dangerous aura from this attractive woman. Nevertheless, they instinctively knew that _she_ was the one in control of _it_ , and that it would _never_ take the reins of her.

Natasha Romanoff-Banner was the master of her own fate. She had gone from an empty shell carrying a bloody ledger, to a woman with a family that ranged from a beautiful daughter, to even the obnoxious brother-in-law-via-science, Tony Stark. May her husband and the Hulk have mercy on those who threatened that family, because she. Would. Not.

"They've forgotten so much, or never learnt it at all," she continued. "They've spent their time in the past creating or guiding individual powerhouses that they can play as puppets, or dividing and conquering those they're also depending upon to protect this world, and killing anyone who's an annoyance.

"The one thing they never understood about the Avengers, is that what saves the day is having a solid team. One that can depend upon each other."

.

.

.

Then Natasha blinked, and smothered any amusement at the sight before her. Despite their masks, Ant-Man and Spider-Man were clearly becoming fanboys of hers, and Wanda was also highly impressed. Even Wasp, despite her lame attempt to hide it. Only Clint was unaffected, as he turned to give Bruce a stern look. "Does that mean you'll be fighting too?"

"Why wouldn't he?" queried Spider-Man.

Taking a deep breath, Bruce explained. "Before, I really struggled with whether or not I should let the Hulk fight. I was afraid of the damage he could do, including to the Avengers. For a while I even decided not to, until Natasha convinced me. But for this to work, both the Hulk and I will be right there beside you all."

"Well that's just stupid," Ant-Man incredulously declared, with Wasp and Spider-Man sharing his confusion. "Why would you be worried about the Hulk? Yeah sure, we heard about Harlem, but you've never killed anybody, right? For crying out loud, I watched those YouTube videos of you and Thor fighting side by side like a hundred times!"

"There were YouTube videos?" Bruce flatly asked, a trickle a dread in his belly.

"And SHIELD never took them down?" Natasha tacked on in disbelief. "That kind of uncensored information…" she trailed off. _Fury, when will we ever stop finding out about your little manipulations?_

"I'm glad to see you've worked everything out." Everyone turned to see the fully adorned figure of Black Panther arrive. "Now we can truly get down to business."

 **XXX**

Muspelheim

Loki's mind slaves nearly died in the First of the Nine Realms they visited upon Loki's command.

Muspelheim, a land of fire, molten rock, and volcanoes.

Worse were the inhabitants.

The protective forcefield they brought nearly failed, yet it had been specifically designed to keep them alive in such extreme heat. At least until they could hurry back into the Portal, a primitive version of the Bifrost, and try again.

There were only nine worlds in the Realms after all, and Master Loki had described the one they were looking for.

Soon, they would find their way to Nidavellir, the home of the Dwarves.

 **XXX**

Wakanda

"So, what are we calling ourselves?" Spider-Man asked. "I mean, if we're really doing this, then this time we've _got_ to have a name!"

The others looked at each other, not having thought that important enough to consider yet.

"Uhm," hedged Bruce.

Ant-Man rubbed his face in his palm. "Stupid! Of course, we should have thought of some ideas already! Uh, how about…" He snapped his fingers. "The Defenders!"

 **XXX**

Elsewhere

Matt Murdock, Luke Cage, Jessica Jones, and Danny Rand, all sneezed at once.

 **XXX**

"…No," Scott sighed. "For some reason that doesn't seem right."

"It's already been taken," Natasha admitted. "But that team has their own problems to handle."

The others looked surprised at this, yet decided to save that conversation for later.

"Ooh, ooh! I know! I know!" Spider-Man cried, waving his hand in the air. Everyone else was honestly unsure whether or not he was being sincere or clowning around for humour. "The 'Bug-Out Squad!'

"Because we've got so many insect themes –and people keep thinking arachnids are insects— and we're going in to save the day when people are 'bugging out' over a threat! It's perfect!"

Catching the looks on Wasp and Natasha's faces, and Clint's guarded expression, Bruce gave Spider-Man a more diplomatic answer before they could speak up. "Yet that implies that the problem has already occurred," he pointed out. "And our membership may change."

Grinning, Ant-Man slapped Spider-Man on the back, and gave him a thumbs-up. Then he put his own sharp mind to the task. "Alright, so we still want something that implies we're more proactive…" He pursed his lip, and glanced at Laura. Unbidden, he saw an image of his own daughter, Cassie.

"…The Future Foundation," Ant-Man declared.

Eyebrow raised in interest, Natasha beckoned him to continue. "Go on."

"We do have a large number of scientists, or scientifically inclined members," Wasp said. She had been a little embarrassed to realize just how proficient Scott Lang really was with electronics. Not that she would ever admit it to him. Barring persuasive tickles. "People who work to improve things. Build things."

"Family," Wanda agreed, rubbing Laura's head. "Children."

Wasp gripped Ant-Man's hand.

"Creating a foundation for the future," Clint clarified out loud. "…I like it."

"Count me in," Spider-Man nodded. "All opposed?"

No one reacted.

"Motion passed, the Future Foundation it is," he concluded. Then gave Ant-Man his own pat on the back, and double thumbs-up.

Then Spider-Man cocked his head in thought. "Speaking of which, what are you going to do with your daughter during this?"

Not missing a beat, Clint said without any give, "Not me." Catching Natasha's hard look, he elaborated. "I know you don't want me involved, and I'll do my best to stay out of it," –a blatant lie and they all knew it; he would never run from threats to others— "but you'll need me for the first bit. I'm the only Avenger who hasn't been seen 'taking sides,' which gives you the edge you'll need. I'll be wasted as a babysitter."

"We're not leaving her here in Wakanda," Natasha warned. "So, who else is there that we can trust?"

Hesitantly, Spider-Man raised a hand. "I _might_ have an idea…"

 **XXX**

 **Author Notes:**

 **The part about Bruce being on par with Darwin, Einstein, Tesla, and Newton is from "Spider-Man: Homecoming," where in Peter's science classroom there is a picture of all five of them together. Regardless of the stigma of the Hulk.**

 **I must confess, the scene where Ant-Man, Wasp, and Spider-Man surprise Bruce and Co. by knowing what they were planning, was inspired by a certain scene from Lego Batman the Movie. As for the Defenders, I am meaning to watch their TV show, but I still have to find the time.**

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 **Next Chapter: "Grieving"**

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 **Please Review and I will get back to you!**


	38. Grieving

For better or worse, Marvel owns all of this stuff, not me.

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Many thanks to my wonderful Betas, Bobbie23 and MasterQwertster, who write some pretty cool stories. Go read them!

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Chapter 38: Grieving

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 _Previously: US military personnel were onsite to investigate –accurate, yet planted— evidence that Natasha had killed their fellow soldiers. Meanwhile, their pawns infiltrated the Avenger's Headquarters using the sole sample of Pym Particles HYDRA had originally stolen._

 _The_ _Appendix's mercenaries intruded Avenger Headquarters to re-brainwash Bucky Barnes into the Winter Soldier, while planting bombs. In the ensuing chaos, Bucky was killed by War Machine, with Captain America trying to kill him in retaliation. Iron Man and Lady Sif arrived shortly after, with the latter successfully escaping with the Captain. Falcon was caught in an explosion, while Vision was unharmed. Many US soldiers were also killed or wounded by explosives concealed by Pym Particles until they re-grew in size to detonate._

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" _You can't go around building a better world for people. Only people can build a better world for people. Otherwise it's just a cage._ "

-Granny Esme Weatherwax, "Witches Abroad" by Terry Pratchett

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Four Weeks after the Battle of Avenger's Headquarters

Blurrily, Sam Wilson woke up, a too familiar ache of pain in his stiff body. The sudden input from his senses –beeping sounds, smell of cleaning products, voices in the background—were nearly overwhelming, yet through bitter experience he persevered through it. Subconsciously he remained still, now remembering he had been in a firefight. Bit by bit his memories came back to him, even as he overheard a feminine voice reporting he should be waking up any moment now.

From underneath hooded lids, he caught sight of two men enter his room to stand by the bed. They wore black suits with white hirts, their concealed weapons bulging under the fabric, and their gait screamed ex-military. While he saw no ID's, he immediately pegged them as some sort of government agents. Possibly they were private security, but they would have left him alone in that case.

 _It…it was Avenger's Headquarters. Natasha. I came to help her, killed her attackers, but she'd already gotten away. And…there was an explosion. I was too close to it. This is a hospital_.

Still motionless, Sam registered a cool piece of metal around his left wrist. _Handcuffs_.

Suddenly alert, he tests the range of the constraints by moving his arm away from the barrier of the bed only to hear metal clinking against metal as his arm doesn't get far. "Huh?" he croaked

Diligently, one of the strangers leaned forward with a cup of water to give Sam a few sips. "Who're you?" Sam rasped.

"We're just here," the one with the cup began, who Sam dubbed 'Good Cop,' "to make sure you're alright. When you're ready, we'd—"

"We'd like to ask if you're willing to sign the Sokovia Accords!" brazenly declared one Tony Edward Stark, as he waltzed into the room.

"Mr. Stark!" bit out Good Cop. "You aren't supposed to be here!"

Judging by their angry reactions, Sam suspected that the two strangers had become more than accustomed to the billionaire ex-playboy's more insufferable exploits and tactics. The one that made you fantasize about killing him and blaming it on one of his former one-night stands who did not take rejection well.

"Oh, come on," Tony waved dismissively. "What's the harm? Sammy-boy's happy to sign up for the Accords! He isn't at all like Captain America, who's innocent of the nasty crimes he's been accused of!"

"Then why'd he run!" angrily snapped the man who was probably Bad Cop.

 _Now I get it_ , Sam realized. To help disguise his thoughts, he rubbed his face as if still half-asleep. _Whatever happened, Steve's the fall guy in all of this. Tony's obviously doing whatever he can to do to protect me, make sure I don't blurt out anything incriminating. He's probably been here irritating them from day on just to make them slip up in front of me. Falling back on his reputation as an obnoxious jerk, a cover he plays so well, so he could give me the head's up._

Clearly Good Cop and Bad Cop had meant to trap him into an admission. Or perhaps he was feeling uncharitable, and they really were going to give him the benefit of the doubt while asking him some pointed questions. _Except I don't really know who they are yet, or who're they're with, or how long I've been out._ A frown scrunched up his eyebrows for an instant. _And I think the drugs are still making me a little loopy after all._

Most importantly, Sam _did_ oppose the Sokovia Accords, and was proud to firmly have Captain America's back.

 _Tony knows this, and expects me to lie._

Which was a problem, because Sam would have to sign the Accords to prove his intent. As a former soldier he was a man who took his oaths seriously. Which raised the time old question: what was the value of a promise made under duress?

 _I can't help Steve if I'm in prison. For crying out loud, I don't even know where he is, and if I got arrested, he'd risk everything to break me out._

Dimly he noted how Tony was still riling his 'guests' up, buying Sam more time.

 _…_ _I'll sign. Best case scenario, we later change them legally to be more in line with the New York Accords. Worst case scenario, I defect. And even if we don't, I'll give the Sokovia ones a fair chance, to see if they actually live up to their_ intent. _See if they work in reality, and if the politicians can adapt if necessary._ That, _is something I'll be willing to commit myself to_.

 **XXX**

Avenger's Tower (again)

(Formerly Stark Tower. Also, again)

Colonel James Rupert Rhodes, a.k.a. Rhodey, stared off into the nightline of New York.

"You shouldn't stay stuck in the past. Goodness knows, it never did me any good."

Rhodey did not react to the words, as Tony came up beside him, carrying two glasses of brandy. "I'm not thirsty," Rhodes politely said when he saw them.

"Good, means I don't have to go back for yours," Tony retorted, as he started one of them. :)

A small smirk graced Rhodey's face before it turned grim once more. "And I'm not stuck in the past."  
"Liar."

Ignoring him, the man who was War Machine turned his gaze back to the city.

 **XXX**

Flashback

 _Literally rocketing down the hallways, he passed over corpses of dead men and women. Some of whom War Machine had played poker with only a few nights ago. Felt like a lifetime ago._

 _Sensors detected the sound of gunfire, and throwing caution to the wind he cut his repulsors to skid across the ground to appear in a doorway. That was why he wore armour after all: to protect others._

 _In an instant, he took it all in._

 _One gunman firing a heavy machine gun at someone just behind another doorframe; his suit's onboard computer scanning and identifying the target as Captain America. And the attacker –surrounded by even more bodies— was drawing a grenade launcher._

 _The man's back was to War Machine, yet that new weapon was already almost aimed at his teammate and friend. Even a super-soldier would be killed by explosives like that. There was no time for anything fancy. So, as any proper soldier would, Colonel Rhodes acted._

 _Two repulsors fired, and the threat fell dead._

 _It was only then it occurred to him how uncharacteristically passive the leader of the Avengers had been during the shootout._

 _Stepping forward, Rhodey finally saw who it really was, face turned towards him as it lay on the floor: Bucky Barnes._

 _Then a vengeful Captain America attacked…_

 **XXX**

Present

"If anyone's to blame, it's me," Tony said. "Yeah, we were so happy with that wonderful failsafe that would've put him to sleep, but I should've put in more contingencies." He paused before starting his second glass, and shrugged. "Of course, if he'd put himself to sleep to foil their plans when they first showed up, they'd have just slit his throat."

Fists tightening, Rhodey flatly ordered, "Don't. Tony."

Internally, Tony winced as he realized he had pushed too far. Four weeks was not long enough. So, he changed the subject. "Sam's signed up. Not like he had much choice, unless he wanted to be a martyr of course. I doubt he really fooled anybody, except maybe a preschooler. Anyways, so long as he's signed and marches to the new beat, there's nothing the government can do. I figure he's going to stick around to see if the Sokovia Accords actually do what they're supposed to. Personally, I'm just glad he's awake and able to take care of himself. I was getting tired of playing babysitter."

This was not an attempt at humour. As the leader of the 'true' Avengers, Tony had been kept busy drawing up new training schedules that were free of Roger's 'taint,' media events, meeting various government officials, etcetera.

These meetings had included important discussions with the new Director of SWORD, Abigail Brand. She was a logical choice, having been Selvig's second-in-command, who had handled all of the practical aspects of running the organization, even before her predecessor's untimely end. While a bit more ruthless and cynical than Tony wanted for leading Earth's intergalactic relations, she was tough and fair-minded enough, that in his eyes it balanced out. The two of them had been discussing Stark Industries' return to weapons development, with an eye for arming SWORD's space stations and defense satellites. The tricky part he encountered when engineering them, was designing something that ensured said weapons were powerful enough to protect the planet, while simultaneously impossible to be turned around and used to threaten the Earth in macabre irony.

 _Of course,_ Tony darkly thought, _I bet the Appendix are throwing a bloody party. Just the kind of system they want to kill Thanos when he shows up, which is why it's so imperative that they can't take control of the system to launch any orbital bombardment when the whim strikes them._

Hence the long hours Tony had also put in to fruitless efforts to find them. From the computer pad he had found near Selvig's corpse, it looked as if the genius had hit a breakthrough in that regard. He had theorized that a cloaked ship could be found by scanning for O2 and looking for pockets in the air where no gases were present. Infuriatingly, just as Tony believed they were going to crack the case wide open, one of the randomized scans his satellites had been doing over America (in addition to ones with set search patterns) found the gutted Dark Elf fighter craft. Abandoned in the woods and stripped of everything of value, there was no telling if the Appendix would even resort to using the cloaking device again.

It was honestly a wonder there had been time to watch Sam's back.

Tony glanced at Rhodey again, before looking back at the horizon as his own dark thoughts surfaced. _Would I have used that failsafe to save him, or would I have used his brainwash-imposed killing spree as an excuse to kill the tool that killed my parents?_

It had been four loooong weeks since he had received that fateful video.

In hindsight, it was obvious that the Appendix had sent it for the explicit purpose of sending Iron Man flying off in a berserker rage. Even worse was Happy spelling it out for Tony once his friend had found the video.

And of course, said 'friend' had gone and told Pepper.

 _Alright, no, it's good he did that. Even if she did get upset about it…_

Pepper Potts had not chewed Tony out, no. _That_ he was used to. Had some sort of tolerance. Her teary eyed and she quietly asked how he could be so reckless?

He shuddered in memory.

Fortunately, talking with her had helped Tony realize that Bucky was just as much the victim. For crying out loud, the man had been friends with Howard Stark! He was one of those few who had actually _liked_ Tony's dad!

 _Un_ fortunately, those discussions had redirected Tony's anger in a way not even his beloved could mollify. It was Natasha and Steve who had first learnt about HYDRA and the Winter Soldier. Who had dumped all of those files onto the internet, which _somehow_ failed to mention anywhere the assassination of two such influential members of both America and SHIELD. Finally, while it was no surprise that Natasha had given no hints she had known – _Which_ , he bitterly had to remind himself, _is no proof_ —, a dozen offhand comments from Capsicle, or the way he deflected certain topics, took on a new light. _He_ knew. _He knew and he never said anything, trying to keep it buried. Mister Truth and Justice said_ nothing.

Finishing his drink, Tony idly twirled the glass in his hands. "We'll keep on playing nice for now, while looking for the Appendix. Get hold of Sharon Carter to contact both the CIA and SHIELD, and work our way using the intelligence agencies and our own resources. The rest of our efforts we'll put into preparing for Thanos. As for Steve, we'll let him come to us. No need to rush into that conversation."

Rhodey absently nodded. _Hopefully I'll know what to say by that point…_

Despite the urge to go get more brandy, Tony stayed by his friend. _Hopefully I won't punch out too many of his perfect teeth._

 **XXX**

Deep Space

Carefully, Thor checked he had a deployable spacesuit as a back-up, before adjusting the forcefield. Secure within the extended bubble of air, he stepped out of the safe walls of _Frigga's Wrath_ , flagship of the allied fleet, to walk upon her hull.

A truly massive tankard of mead in one hand, he gazed upon the cosmos. Idly his mind painted visions of Jane Foster within the constellations.

 _I needed this_ , the Avenger thought as he felt the stress flow out of him. He gulped down a few more mouthfuls. _Just…peace. A reminder of what I'm fighting for._

The last few weeks had become increasingly hard as the savagery of the war against Thanos escalated endlessly. Thor knew that if he were human, his face would bear heavy scars right now.

In a week or so however, he was to be recalled before King Odin to fight a different sort of battle: diplomacy. Seeing the success of the united forces of Xandar, and Asgard and her allies, other civilizations were willing to entertain the possibility that Thanos could be defeated.

Thor had no delusions it would be as easy as they believed.

 _After all_ , Thor bitterly knew, _it truly matters not how many_ billions _of his minions we slay. Victory will only be ours if we slay the Mad Titan…and ensure he_ never _acquires any of the Infinity Stones._

 _Oh well,_ as he tried to cheer himself back up, _at least I'll finally be able to meet those Guardians of the Galaxy!_

 **XXX**

Somewhere in the US

Steve Rogers woke up.

And yet at the same time, it felt as if he had been awake for weeks. Or, at the very least, his body had been moving about. Eating what was put in front of it. Responding when told to go wash up. Sleeping when given a blanket. It was his mind that had been asleep.

 _Oh…_

 _…_ _Bucky._

Once more grief squeezed at his heart, but now Captain America had recovered enough to embrace it, and hold it fast. Acknowledging his feelings, but refusing to let them consume him anymore. He was a soldier –a warrior— at heart, and he had to find out what was wrong around him. Find who was responsible.

Standing up, Steve took stock of his situation.

Jeans and a hoody that was a little tight to wear. Rubbing the long stubble on his face, he had an estimate of approximately four weeks since he had shaved last, but neither he nor his clothes stank as if it had been that long. _Right, they've been washed. And someone told me to clean up too, and that's what I did._ Sensitive ears picked up running water, from what he presumed to be a creek. Trees surrounded him, and he tried to narrow down where he was from the species and their details, even as his nose belatedly registered the smell of cooking meat, making his stomach growl with appreciation.

Spinning around, he saw Sif staring at him from where she crouched motionlessly by a fire. A small woodland creature was being roasted by the flames. "So, you're finally truly awake," she gently said. Nothing about the state he had been in, or how long it had taken. Simply a statement.

Like him, she was wearing a bland hoody and jeans, although he caught a glimpse of her compacted sword at her side, and his Avengers' wrist computer encircling her arm where the sleeve rode up.

"Tony can track that, you know," he said as he pointed at the latter.

"I took care of it," she simply said, with the authority a woman who had lived over 1000 years. She knew he was still adjusting, trying to find something ordinary to focus on.

Then Steve's eyes locked onto hers.

"What happened?" he asked his girlfriend, in a tone which seemed too calm to be real.

"When I arrived, Stark and Rhodes had subdued you, while Bucky was lying dead. Given the state of the bodies around him, and the weapons nearby, I assume that the compulsions in his mind had been reborn," Sif stated. "I can only guess that Colonel Rhodes found himself forced to kill your best friend before using the failsafe, or it didn't work."

Steve's chin fell to his chest. "No. I'd just activated it when Rhodes fired. Another second or two…"

Silence fell between them.

"He was my friend."

Privately, Sif knew that her fellow Avenger had done the right thing. Her personal experience, and a whole month to think it through, helped her plan what to tell Steve once his mind had healed. "Do you remember when Lorelei came to Earth?" she asked.

"The Asgardian who could control men?" he clarified, just in case, given how disorientated he felt. "She tried to kill Bruce, and Natasha beat her half to death."

"Yes," and there was suddenly a satisfied grin on Sif's face that was unnerving. "And she had been on Earth before, which is when I helped Son of Coul and his companions. But what did the reports say about her time before she was imprisoned in Asgard? And why I was sent to hunt her down that time?"

"You were the one to capture her before," Steve realized. "…and she took control of someone you cared about."

Face hardening, yet at the memory, and not Steve's words, Sif gave a stiff nod. "His name was Haldor, and he was my lover. Until he was enthralled by Lorelei. She used his skills as a warrior to lead her conquests. At least when she was not compelling him into her bed. Eventually, he was killed on the battlefield before I saved him."  
Taking a deep breath, she continued. "After several years, Lorelei's rebellion was finally put down, and I was the one to defeat her. Applying an artifact that robbed her of her powers, I freed her slaves. All of the men." Sif's eyes darkened as she saw the past. "Victims who tasted the breath of freedom again…and remembered all of the crimes and atrocities they had committed while under her control. The dead at their feet, including even their own loved ones. While Lorelei learnt to control that appetite of hers, yet a part of her still savoured tormenting other women into accept how little their love meant before her power. Forcing her slaves to then kill them as 'proof' of their commitment to her.

"Haldor only had me. No family, and no other friends.

"But the worst part?" Sif finished with barred teeth. "The worst were my orders…to bring her back alive. Which I did, as duty commanded me. Even if I had to fight off those whom I had just freed from captivity to do so. It was the law, and I carried it out, despite how much I _hungered_ to seek my own revenge on the woman who took the man I cared for. Later, I took solace in how she suffered for six hundred years in that prison, barring a brief breath of freedom before I put her back. Begging me to kill her instead of condemning her back to it. Goading me, by bringing up Haldor."

She closed her eyes, and slowly the tension eased out of her.  
"Thank you," Steve whispered. "Thank you for trusting me with that."

He craned his neck to look up at the blue sky, with patterns of the dawn still breaking across. Steve hesitated, struggling to think of something to say. Grappling with the turmoil of emotions inside of him, pulling him in multiple directions at once.

"There is one other thing," Sif added. "I never really said goodbye to Haldor, especially when we parted ways for what was only supposed to be a brief impasse. It was during this time that Lorelei enslaved him. Therefore, I never got to tell him how I truly felt. Which is why I'm happy that you have that chance now. Bucky Barnes' final words."

Steve's head snapped down to look at her in confusion, while she silently pulled out an I-Phone from her coat. Turning it on like he had taught her, she put in a password (random letters as per Avenger policy) to open it, and then scrolled through the options. A few seconds later, she handed it over to him, and stood up. "I'll leave you in privacy."

Then she placed the food beside the fire so it would not burn, and left.

It was a video file, waiting for another security code to access it.

Pausing in thought for a moment, Steve typed in H-A-L-D-O-R.

" _Access granted_."

 **XXX**

" _Steve, if you're watching this, I'm probably dead_ ," said Bucky.

Based on his clothes and hair-length, Steve estimated the Bucky on screen was from only a few weeks ago. He was out of his cell, sitting on a chair in a plain room.

" _Sif suggested this to me after you fought the Appendix. How you guys almost died on that spaceship, and learnt how grief and vengeance helped turn them insane_." He shrugged with a cocky grin. " _Given how I'm probably dead of unnatural causes, you can guess where I'm going with this already. But I've got to do it anyways. I'm going to give a copy to all the Avengers, just in case._ "

Eyes hardening, Bucky went on. " _Knowing you, you're probably blaming yourself for my death, or whoever else got caught up in it. I don't know how it happened, but I'm hoping it involved a lot of hot women_." A smile cracked through. " _This is the part where you smirk and make some comment about being my wingman. Seriously though, I hope you find yourself someone, because America's greatest hero being single is just wrong!_ "

Bucky cocked his head to the side. " _And yeah, I'm joking from beyond the grave, but that's life. If you can't find something to enjoy about it, then what's the point?_ " Groaning, he rubbed his face _. "Listen to me, sounding philosophical, and I can't even get drunk anymore!_ "

With a sigh, the monologue continued. " _Like I said, you're blaming yourself. You weren't fast enough. You didn't figure out what they were planning. You weren't there when I needed you. Just like back on the train in '45._

 _"_ _It's not your fault._

" _There, I said it. The time when I fell, you couldn't save me, and thought I was dead_ ," Bucky flatly said. " _But you know what? What I regret the most about that time isn't what happened next when the Soviets found me, it's that I didn't get to say goodbye before that piece of metal –flimsy, cruddy piece of Nazi construction— broke off. We both thought I was a dead man then, Steve. I should've died, but instead I spent over sixty years_ _walking around like a zombie under someone else's orders_ _, with that as my last thought. I. Didn't. Say. Goodbye._

" _So now I am: Take care of yourself Steve, and I'll see you later. Just don't you pass the Pearly Gates before you're old and gray. Until you've loved a woman –or man, I'm not judging— and had a family. Adopt if you have to. Whatever you do though, don't stop living your life, and don't forget that we_ will _see each other again. And when we do, I expect to hear all about it._

 _"_ _And I'll tell you what I've been up to with Dum Dum, James, Jim, Gabe, Jacques —hopefully I'll have learnt French better—, and you can bet Peggy'll be there too. By the time you get there, maybe Colonel Phillips will have loosened up. Maybe. Oh, and we'll have your Mom's home cooking waiting for you_."

Letting out a deep breath, it seemed as if a great weight had been lifted off of Bucky's shoulders. " _Huh. That felt better than I thought it would. I won't bore you with the rest, because you know it all already, or it'd be boring. Just remember what I said Steve._

" _See yah around_."

He nodded at whoever was holding the camera, and the screen went black.

 **XXX**

Sif waited for over half an hour before she came back, and found tears still rolling down from Steve's eyes.

"Thank you," he simply said.

"You're welcome."

Then she fixed up the camp some more. When he was ready to talk about it, she would listen. In the meantime, Sif would not pressure him.

 **XXX**

Nidavellir

At last Loki's slaves had found it: Nidavellir, one of the Nine Realms, and home of the Dwarves.

They stopped to clean and bandage their wounds, and eat to refresh their energy. Only at their best could they fulfill their mission.

Nidavellir was an unusual planet for such a technologically advanced culture. The surface with covered with jagged mountains, undeveloped and left to its natural state. It was misleading to newcomers, as the Dwarves' orbital defenses were as devastating as they were discreet, ensuring the Dwarves never had (until now) any unwanted guests besides Asgardians, who had their Bifrost to slip around such issues. As for the inhabitants, their preference was to build their massive cities deep underground, so as to escape the three suns overhead.

This was relevant to their mission, since while the Dwarves –to their keen regret— acknowledged that _IT_ was most secure on their homeworld, given their role with _IT_ , they outright refused to keep it anywhere near their own people. So _IT_ was kept above ground. It was unlikely that any intruders would get past their spaceships and fortresses.

It took half the day to hike there, yet even that short distance was an amazingly convenient coincidence given the relevant size of a planet. They literally could have come out on the other side of the world. As it was, they needed frequent breaks under tents to shelter them from the three suns and potential heat stroke, in order compete their mission. Fortunately, Master Loki had provided them with detailed maps and information for this last stage. Long ago he had scouted out the place they were headed, studied it, and created a weakness. A weakness they were now to implement.

Finally, they were there.

Black and imposing beneath the everlasting sunlight, it was only the size of a large house back on Earth. There were no creases that could be seen, as if it were simply a massive slab of sleek metal that had been dumped down. Patrolling it however were twenty Asgardians in full battle armour, the only presence the Dwarves were willing to tolerate. Even as the war against Thanos waged across the stars, these guards, or their replacements as they were rotated out, would never be removed.

The thirty humans settled down to work, prepping stolen, military grade weaponry. Rapid fire grenade launchers, sabot rounds, rocket launchers, anti-tank guns, everything. They would have only one chance to act upon their Master's will. The most important job however was being performed by their leader, as he did a last, diligent check of the most important device they had created. Loki had only given instructions on how to build it, fearing that if Heimdall's all-seeing eyes should discover it, Asgard would immediately and preemptively attack. Odin would never tolerate the slightest risk.

"Now," was all the leader said, entering the initialization code into the device, and pressed the red button to activate.

(When Dr. Selvig had helped create it, adding his own Infinity Stone influenced genius to the task, he had been manic in his insistence that it be a red button).

Down below, a dull 'thunk' rang out.

 **XXX**

The Sanctuary

(Domain of Thanos)

Thanos grinned in pleasure as he looked through his instruments.

While the interference of this alliance prevented him from dealing with Earth personally, he was pleased that his contingency was bearing fruit.

Loki, even after all Thanos had done to relieve him of his pride, still arrogantly believed himself resistant to any of the Mad Titan's own acts of mind control. Even sweeter, it never occurred to the little frost giant that this influence was transferable, that for every man and woman Loki assumed domination of, hidden protocols had also left them open to Thanos' mind.

All this time, unbeknownst to even them, Loki's remaining agents upon Earth had been acting on behalf of their one, _true_ Master. Enacting a plan that Loki had only dreamt up as a contingency for when he truly had no other cards to play.

 ** _Which would have been a waste_** , Thanos mused. **_Such a delightful creation. It's a wonder really that he never chose to use it sooner. Some scrap of ridiculous sentiment perhaps? No matter._**

 ** _While it will inevitably start with the Dwarves, it will follow the scent of the Terrans back to Terra itself. If it destroys that world, the Infinity Stones will remain, for they are beyond its power. If it merely damages Terra, it is guaranteed to still leave it vulnerable, and 'Prince' Thor might even be diverted to seek vengeance upon it. And then I will come and make both my servants._**

 ** _If it fails, then I have lost nothing, and Terra will be left all the more vulnerable._**

His grin stretched even further.

Either way, his beloved Death prospered.

 **XXX**

Nidavellir

Bardon Barsilson, Captain of the Guard, paled as he whirled at the noise.

Across the black surface of their charge, mechanisms flexed and moved, segments folded away and shifted as the prison began to open.

Eyes swiveled to the concealed locking mechanism, but it was clear that nothing was there. Only the Allfather should have the key, and yet impossibly their worst nightmare was now beginning. Then he recalled how it was supposed to work. _A mechanical key, however sophisticated, was deemed by the Dwarves to be a weakness to the structure, so they devised one that would work at range. Albeit, and only such a short range that it would work the same. If that holds true…_

Harnon Transon, his second in command, struck his fist against the emergency alert. King Odin himself had overseen the forging of this prison, and he had been explicit that those tasked with its defense should place priority on warning the Nine Realms of what had been unleashed. Horrifyingly, the gem remained dull, without the glow of activation.

"Whoever it is has to be close by!" roared Captain Bardon, just before they were fired upon.

Fired upon by those who their ancestors had mistaken as gods.

Wielding powers and technology still beyond Earth's comprehension.

(Barring individuals like Tony Stark and Bruce Romanoff-Banner).

Armour and shields deflected the assault, and half their team crossed the terrain in seconds to fall upon the mortals _insane_ enough to try this.

Dimly the Asgardians processed that their prey were Midgardians as they cut through them with swords that could slice through vibranium with equal ease. In a mere four seconds, two thirds of them were dead. Then the guards saw a pattern to the slaughter: the bodies that fell before them were merely a distraction.

"NO!" cried Bardon as he raced around a large rock they had overlooked in their charge.

Striking downwards with his spear, the leader of the Midgardians fell dead. Another strike, and the device in his hand was destroyed.

But the damage was done.

Blood freezing in their veins, the Asgardians took in the ongoing sight of the turning locks, whirling gears and tumblers, and knew deep within their bones that the creature's release was inevitable. There was nothing they could do to prevent it, even without the distraction posed by those who released him. They would stand between it and the Nine Realms till it stole their last breath.

"Stand together," Bardon ordered with a calmness he did not feel. He had failed his duty, and his family was disgraced. Worse, the evil was unleashed. All he could do now was provide his men with a death worthy of Valhalla. "It may be weakened enough for us to contain it."

They knew it would not.

The doors clicked open.

 **XXX**

Mass was displaced and re-sorted as the prison folded itself open, almost like a flower. What had been a solid surface parted to let in light and air for the occupant.

The chains fell away, their links covered in bloodied barbs to hold their captive in place. Strong they were, stronger than anything else the Dwarves had created, barring Mjolnir itself. And even they had barely been enough to stop what had been entombed alive here. Sealed away, because it had been beyond the even the wrath of Asgard, a kingdom of warrior gods, to kill it.

Or…possibly…just possibly…they were _afraid_ to kill it.

That Odin Allfather feared that there might be some truth to the prophecies of old. Or worse, fearing its death would take the future unto an even darker unknown horizon, beyond his sight to control or defy.

Nevertheless, the time was now.

At long last it was free, announcing its escape with a deafening roar.

"For Odin Allfather!" screamed Bardon, as he led the charge.

His torso disappeared between the massive fangs into the abyss of its core.

Armour and shields were rent asunder by claws, while again and again they were consumed by hungry jaws which showed no ill effects from years of imprisonment.

In only five heartbeats it was over, as a dark-grey figure stood over the carcasses of false gods, bathed in their blood.

Fenrir.

Lokison.

Wolf god.

Herald of Ragnarok.

 **XXX**

 **Author Notes:**

 **A scene that Bucky deserved.** ** _Not_** **the last of him either, I have one more appearance for him.**

 **I confess that the scene with Tony and the two glasses of brandy was inspired by season 2 of MASH, specifically when the higher-ups send a psychologist to evaluate the doctors.**

 **The reason that the Avengers who signed the Sokovia Accords are back at Stark Tower as opposed to the fancy place we saw in Spiderman: Homecoming, is sadly that WAS the place that just got blown up. We just never saw it as developed as that in the previous films.**

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 **Next Chapter: "Ragnarok"**

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 **Please Review and I will get back to you!**


	39. Ragnarok -- Fenrir

For better or worse, Marvel owns all of this stuff, not me.

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Many thanks to my wonderful Betas, Bobbie23 and MasterQwertster, who write some pretty cool stories. Go read them!

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Chapter 39: Ragnarok Part 1:

Fenrir

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 **The following content** **was** **written before the release of Thor 3: Ragnarok**

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 _Previously: The Appendix appears triumphant, having finally driven the Avengers into different groups as part of their plan of survival of the fittest, while holding dangerous influence over the US government. Iron Man, War Machine, Vision, and Falcon, have signed the Sokovia Accords. Captain America and Lady Sif are literally hiding in the woods. Unbeknownst to anyone outside of Wakanda however, Dr. Bruce Romanoff-Banner, Black Widow, Scarlet Witch, Spider-Man, Ant Man, Wasp, and Hawkeye have formed a new hero team called the Future Foundation._

 _Unfortunately, due to Thanos' manipulations, Loki's final contingency was activated by his surviving mental slaves from when he had originally tried to conquer Earth. Traveling to the Dwarf planet of Nidavellir, they attacked an Asgardian prison, unleashing the fearsome herald of Ragnorak: Fenrir._

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" _Fenrir (pronounced "FEN-reer;" Old Norse Fenrir, "He Who Dwells in the Marshes") is the most infamous of the many wolves in Norse mythology._

" _[…] He's the son of the god Loki and the giantess Angrboða, which makes him the brother of the serpent Jormungand and the underworld goddess Hel._

 _[…]_

 _"_ _As is recounted more fully in the tale The Binding of Fenrir, the Aesir gods raised Fenrir themselves in order to keep him under their control and prevent him from wreaking havoc throughout the Nine Worlds. He grew at an astonishingly fast pace, however, and eventually the troubled gods decided to chain him up._

 _[…]_

 _"_ _For their third attempt, the gods had the dwarves forge the strongest chain ever built, which nevertheless gave the appearance of being very light and even soft to the touch. When the gods presented Fenrir with this third fetter, he became suspicious, and he refused to be bound with it unless one of the gods would stick his or her hand in his mouth as a pledge of good faith. Only Tyr was brave enough to do this, knowing that it would mean the loss of his hand. And, sure enough, when Fenrir found himself unable to break free of his bonds, he ripped Tyr's hand from his arm._

 _[…]_

 _"_ _At Ragnarok, he broke free and ran throughout the world with his lower jaw against the ground and his upper jaw in the sky, devouring everything in his path. He even killed the god Odin before finally being put to death by one of Odin's avenging sons._ "

-Online at 'Norse Mythology for Smart People'

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Nidavellir

Only at first glance was it a wolf. Or perhaps only in the imaginations of generations who have read too many fantasy stories about magical wolves, or direwolves. Instead of a lean creature built for speed, it was as muscular as a bear. Shoulders easily reaching the crown of an Asgardian's head. For all this size however, its movements were reminiscent of its Midgardian cousins with its deadly, silent grace. Except those wolves were built to run down prey after a long change chase, with an emphasis on pack tactics. This creature, with its overly exaggerated features was clearly built to tear to shreds whatever got in its path.

Claws extended like a tiger on the prowl. Fangs that were noticeably longer than a 'true' wolf, while still concealed by the mouth. The colour of its fur was a bland dark grey in patches, while in others places it was black as a moonless night.

It was the eyes however that were the final hint it was not a wolf: neither yellow, nor blue, but green. Green as Loki's own eyes.

Nevertheless, it clearly shared a common ancestry with the wolf in its lupine form, despite how large, strong, and better armed it was. Or perhaps one could argue that _they_ shared _it_ as an ancestor, as it was touted as the Wolf God.

Hungrily, Fenrir swallowed the corpses of the Asgardians, before unerringly turning towards the Humans. Ears perking, it first went to the one who had lead them in attacking the prison. The Captain of the Guard stabbed the man with a spear, yet he had been chosen to lead for a reason, and fanatically he clung to life. Triumph sparkled in his face as he saw who loomed over him, and he mustered what little remained of his strength. "M-Master Loki sent us… Rule… Earth…" He rattled out with his last breath.

Unnaturally still, Fenrir stared down at the body. Then with a growl and flaring nostrils it savagely shredded the dead man. He swallowed most of the body in gulps, no need for him to chew till he came to only boney scraps, and turned then to rest of the Humans. Flesh, armour, and even their weapons all went down his gullet. Intently it then turned its attention to sniffing out their trail, and with a bound started to follow it, crossing the mountains easily at an immense pace.

 **XXX**

Earth

Kamar-Taj

Dr. Stephen Strange scowled as he and his fellow Masters of the Mystic Arts prepared for war.

Personally, he knew it was terribly risky for all of them to deploy into an alternate dimension, but given the scope of what they faced there was no real alternative. They simply lacked the forces to both repel the oncoming threat and leave reserves behind on Earth. _And thanks to Mordo's_ brilliant _idea, we're a little short on sorcerers right now! Idiot!_

They had stripped _him_ of his magic, and thrown him into a mental asylum run by a doctor that Strange respected. Well, as much as he could respect any medical professional that was not himself. Or Christine.

 _Alright, and to be fair, Kaecilius is also to blame, killing his own share of us. I really wish we could just resurrect the Ancient One to handle this… Or even to grab and shake her while demanding to know_ why _she never left behind any instructions on how to properly_ fix _the Sanctuaries._

Being down to just the New York meant Earth's ancient defenses were now too vulnerable to repel this threat on their own. The sorcerers had to go on the offense.

The Cloak of Levitation chose that moment to discretely poke its 'master,' pulling him out of his woolgathering.

"Ahem," Strange coughed. "Right. So…we all ready to go," he asked solid and stoic Wong.

"Yes," the man gravely agreed, hefting his own Artifact. "We must go now, or Shuma-Gorath will destroyed the entire world."

"And then maybe we'll have enough peace to get those Sanctums repaired," Strange grumbled. "Why'd Agamotto have to make them so complicated?" It was keeping him too busy to see Christine, even if she did keep 'complimenting' on his elevation to leading his 'cult.' Hilarious. Not.

"Then continue your studies," Wong reprimanded.

Deciding not to argue further, Strange began to form the necessary portal. _The novices and the Avengers can keep the Earth intact for the next two weeks._

 **XXX**

Death Valley, California

Two Hours Later

With a snarl, Fenrir crashed through the Portal to land upon Midgard. His keen sense of smell confirmed he had been fortunate to find the original source of the trail on his first attempt. Ancient memories came to the fore as he recognized this land.

Nose raised, he loudly sniffed the air, feeling the various scents as he searched for the largest population center that was within his range. From his body language it was clear he was confused, trying to understand this world from his senses, and finding things out of place. He had been locked away for a long time after all, and local inhabitants had done much to warp and change the world during those passing years. There were several settlements, but the only one that seemed big enough for his purposes…

Spinning around, he raced across the terrain to the east.

 **XXX**

Avenger's Tower

" _Sir_ ," FRIDAY's voice cut in over the radio.

Holding up an authoritative hand to the people on the viewscreen, Tony Stark addressed the AI. "Yes? What's the emergency?"

" _Satellites detecting an unidentified energy source in the south-western US. It is moving at extremely high speeds straight east, and a review of its point of origin –Death Valley, California— reveals trace energy samples associated with the Bifrost. According to SHIELD records, they believed a related means of travel could be found there, but they never were successful in finding it._

" _I unfortunately don't have a visual on it yet. However, there are reports going to local law enforcement_ _that_ _it destroys whatever is in its path, including a few small cities. No reported casualties so far, only major property damage, and hysterical citizens. Whatever it is, it doesn't seem to care about them, or anything that gets in its way."_

Biting back the urge to curse, Tony swiveled back to the people he had been talking to before the interruption.

One screen displayed General Talbot, with several other senior officers present. While not technically necessary for these talks, Tony figured it would be beneficial to show a sign of trust. More importantly, the man was the US government's go-to man for dealing with _issues_ with powers. Barring the Avengers of course.

The middle screen held several important politicians, all integrally linked with committees or special interest groups deeply invested in aligning the Avengers and the Sokovia Accords. Several appeared affronted by this display of apparent disrespect by Stark, while a slim majority appeared willing to take the backseat as they recognized this warning from FRIDAY was a priority.

The last projection was the most interesting for Tony however: King T'Challa and his special guest, Hawkeye, straight from the Wakandan embassy, Washington DC.

In a brilliant move, Hawkeye had apparently gone to the Wakandan embassy for asylum, citing concerns that he would be attacked like his fellow Avengers, and worried for his Constitutional Rights. A sympathetic King T'Challa involved himself, which led to this high-level meeting. Given how many secrets Hawkeye still knew, his role as an Avenger who was hopefully 'untainted' by Nick Fury, Captain America, and Black Widow, he was a valuable 'asset.' More importantly, Tony knew the archer was too canny to have pulled such a bold move without some contingency plan in mind. Especially given how vulnerable he would be in a foreign embassy. _Especially_ a Wakandan embassy.

"Gentlemen, I'm afraid I'll have to cut our talks short before they've even begun. We've got to get a handle on this ASAP, and confirm whether this is something hostile or _benign_." He stressed the last part to ensure no one jumped the gun.

"FRIDAY, alert the other Avengers. And where is this mysterious energy signature," – _So help me Thor, if this is_ another _Asgardian mess we've got to clean up…!_ — "headed?"

" _It's changed its course a little, but my best estimate, its final destination_ _in an hour_ _will be unfortunately familiar to you: Las Vegas_."

"Son of a—!"

 **XXX**

Las Vegas

(The city that cannot catch a break)

An hour later

As its destination came into view, Fenrir slowed to a more cautious speed to arrive, visibly wary.

Confused, it passed through the ruined parts of the city, where the massive Battle of Las Vegas had occurred only a few months ago. Despite the work of time and the elements, Fenrir could still smell the blood of Asgardians who fought and died on this ground during battle.

Then beyond the broken buildings the Wolf God laid its eyes on the rest of Vegas. The city that refused to die, as its inhabitants refused to leave the damaged ruin, and poured their sweat into rebuilding their home.

Teeth bared in hungry anticipation, Fenrir stalked forward.

 **XXX**

The evacuation order had come in as soon as the Avengers learnt what was happening, and decided to err on the side of caution. Even better, the military was present to aid the refugees. People were streaming out in a brisk, yet calm and efficient manner. The citizens, survivors of the last monster attack which had destroyed half the city, and who had lived every day since with the sight of the ruins, were understandably cooperative.

Regrettably, an hour was still not long enough to move them all to what was, hopefully, a safe distance.

"Satellite says it's here and approaching fast!" barked one squaddie to his mates. "Get these people out of here!"

Fortunately, these were not idle men and women, and had come up with a game plan since they _knew_ where the Unidentified Being was going.

 **XXX**

Fenrir paused. It could smell and hear the people a few blocks ahead. The buildings were strange and alien to it, and it frequently stalled to gaze quizzically at some of them, usually quirking its nose in confusion.

Further delay happened after Fenrir tore into a pizza joint to eat the food and ovens.

Before it now however, right in the center of the road, was a strange piece of metal and —*sniff*— electronics. Fenrir lacked the context to identify it as a repurposed bomb squad drone, able to drive to designated locations while sending back video feed to its controllers. Sticking to it were posters with words like "DO YOU COME IN PEACE?", and pictures of smiling humans opening their arms in friendship. Soothing music was playing, and there was even a plate of cooked and seasoned meat to the side.

Snarling, Fenrir's jaws enveloped the machine.

 **XXX**

Temporary Military Headquarters

"Well, that answers that," the officer in charge of the op center sanguinely said. The drone's camera had cut out with the last image being a close-up of the super-wolf's red tongue. "We tried playing nice. Now we play hardball."

Secretly, he was trying to keep his lunch inside after that image of those long, loooong teeth.

Even worse was how its fur was still splattered with blood and gore from a previous meal…

 **XXX**

On guard now, Fenrir advanced more cautiously. There was no one in sight, yet there were so many machines that had curiously and distractingly been left on, as well as countless unfamiliar smells. Especially one strange one right now that was all around—

The mines, IEDs, and packs of C4 inside the cars all went off at once.

A storm of fire and shrapnel.

Believing in overkill, choppers flew in, unleashing every missile and bullet they could manage. "Eat this, you freaky alien piece of—"

A chunk of cement nearly the size of a basketball flew right past his window.

"It's still alive! Fall back! Fall back and pull up!"

With an almost jaunty air, Fenrir strutted out of the smoke, fur unsinged. Irritably it growled up at the retreating vehicles, but ultimately chose to ignore them. They were literally not a threat.

 **XXX**

En Route to Las Vegas

Government Registered Quinjet

Peering at the video image of what they were dealing with Iron Man glanced at Vision, flipping his faceplate up. "Anything related to Asgard and giant wolves?"

"Yes, Fenrir," Vision reported. Then he cocked his head in interest. "Both Thor and Sif have been correcting the 'facts' on some of the old legends. Strangely, neither of them have said anything upon Fenrir, or left any notes. Which is curious, given how they corrected our information on the rest of Loki's supposed children."

"Wonderful," Tony said with a cheerful demeanor they all knew was false. "So, I guess this means Reindeer Games is causing us trouble from beyond the grave?" _We should've known that narcissist would pull something like that_. _But why did Thor keep quiet about this? Or Sif for that matter?_

"What's the plan, Tony?" a fully outfitted War Machine asked.

"I should stick with aerial reconnaissance," Falcon admitted, hefting one of his machine pistols. While still not fully recovered after weeks of being unconscious in a hospital bed, the Avengers needed his help, even if only to be a friendly face while getting civilians away. Besides, he _was_ a tough guy, and more than capable of taking on any regular threat. "These and those nifty wrist mounted rockets you gave me aren't going to do much. That said, it's not acting like any wolf I've ever seen."

"No, it's displaying distinctively atypical behaviour for an animal," Vision agreed, throwing Iron Man a significant glance. "It may be intelligent. Sentient even."

" _Or maybe it just enjoys playing with its food! What does it matter! Just kill it!_ "

The Avengers glanced at the screens depicting the same groups of individuals from before, with the one who had spoken up being a politician who in all honesty they could not bother to remember the name of. The men and women surrounding him in the scene were caught between agreeing, neutral expressions, and troubled by the behaviour of their own member.

" _Do not harass your warriors while they are in the field_ ," chastised King T'Challa. From the background, he was clearly in some sort of jet. The screen split to then display Hawkeye, apparently in a similar vehicle. " _Black Panther's right_ ," –some of the others reacted with surprise at that name— " _and as a man currently enjoying diplomatic immunity, let me tell you that micromanaging is a royal pain for those trying to do their job_."

" _That said_ ," Black Panther continued, " _it_ is _acting strangely. Even if its intentions appear clear. It has made no attempt to communicate_."

" _No, it is sending a message_ ," General Talbot disagreed. " _By going slow like that, it's trying to play it cautious, while also letting us know there's nothing we can do to stop it. But I don't think it's intelligent like you and I, or an Asgardian. The way it moves and acts says it's an animal. Too primal. And if it were a person, it wouldn't come at us like this. Even if it were planning to attack us, it wouldn't run up out of the blue like this, and then fail by being so obvious when stalking its prey._ "

"Gentlemen, this is all fun," Iron Man drawled, "but also very academic. What's important now is how we handle the situation. I'm still out of Hulkbuster suits, and you haven't given me permission to build new ones," –he pointed at several politicians in particular with a meaningful look— "and we still don't really know what's going on. Is he alone, or just the vanguard? Does he have any motives we can understand? According to mythology he has some connection to Loki, so presumably there really was one in fact. Does this mean he's some sort of petty attack on us by Loki from beyond the grave? Because if so, then you can bet there's more going on."  
Then Iron Man subtly straightened, drawing more authority to himself. "Whatever it is, we've got to handle this with a cool head. And if worse comes to worse, we've still got is some very nasty weaponry."

Tony honestly could not tell if they were denying him the right to make the Hulkbusters out of a moronic need to assert their control over the Avengers –based upon the equally moronic assumptions there were no imminent threats, and the Hulk would have attacked already if he were planning to—, or out of fear of the Avengers. The overpaid suits with more than two brain cells probably decided to save their political capital for something more 'important' with the Avengers.

Iron Man paused, then looked at his fellow Avengers. "Since it hasn't killed anyone, but by the way it attacked that robot, we can assume it'll probably treat a human the same way. Hence why the copters fired upon it. That said, since we haven't escalated to the point where anyone's dead or wounded, we can still give one last try at communicating with or capturing it. Failing that, we open up with everything we've got."

" _Mr. Stark_ ," blustered the politician from before.

" _The military is behind you_ ," Talbot cut in. " _Remember though, we're all part of the same team_." The message was obvious: 'This is your only chance to make a good first impression with the Registered Avengers, and get the support you need. Don't mess it up by acting like a rogue cowboy.'

 **XXX**

Just outside of Nevada

The convoy of military men in trucks raced down the road to help contain the threat in Las Vegas. Some of them had even been there the first time super-powered madness had gone down there. They were the proud and loyal defenders of America however, truth and liberty, and weren't going to sit back without doing whatever they could to protect all their beloved country stood for. Turning a corner, they found themselves sharing a road with a couple on an old motorcycle.

"Hmph. No helmet," groused the lieutenant in charge. While he might be a man who volunteered for dangerous service, he remained a firm believer in abiding with safety laws and equipment, so you got back home again. _Especially_ when back home meant you faced fewer risks. Why go out looking for more?

Then the man driving the bike glanced towards them, instantly recognizable as Steve Rogers.

"…Sergeant? You seeing this?"

"Yessir."

"I'm going to call this up the line. Sound good?"  
"Yessir."

 **XXX**

En Route to Las Vegas

Government Registered Quinjet

"I don't care about the Accords," Tony politely yet firmly said to the talking heads on his screen. "Whatever this is, it's Asgardian, and Sif's our resident expert. Since we don't have Little Red Riding Hood or a convenient hunter to take care of our _little_ wolf problem, let's try asking her politely first, hmm!?"

 **XXX**

Just outside of Nevada

Riding on their bike, Captain America and Lady Sif watched the soldiers miming tapping their wrists and talking into it, while others held up maps and pointed to Las Vegas. The genuine enthusiasm they were all showing at seeing them was both reassuring, as well as demonstrating how serious the situation was. "I think they want us to call Tony about whatever's happening in Vegas," Captain America said. While they did not know _what_ was going on, government bulletins about it had spread across the nation as they city was being evacuated again, and civil services raced to handle the emergency.

"Yes."

Sif leaned back a little so she could turn on her wrist computer, and a few moments later had Iron Man on speakerphone. Despite her alterations to ensure he could not track her with it, she had left the rest of its functions intact.

"This is Lady Sif," the Asgardian in question said into the mike.

"Captain America."

" _Great, excellent, glad you're back from the honeymoon_ ," Tony's voice broke in. " _Listen, I'm sending you a visual, but we've got a giant wolf attacking Las Vegas. Near as we can tell, it came out of Death Valley with a bad attitude, and the only clue we have about its origins is that we detected an energy signature similar to that of Asgard's Bifrost right before it appeared. Care to explain_?"

Promptly, Sif got to work. "It sounds as if it came out of the same Passage between the Nine Realms that Lorelei used before. As for what it is, there are many creatures that resemble wolves that I know of. I need something more specific."

" _Well, from the picture, it is black, mixed with grey. Super long fangs. Huh, Vision's saying its claws are proportionately longer than an Earth wolf's claws—I cannot believe I just said that sentence. It's_ big _._ " Then Sif's computer pinged and pulled up a picture. " _Oh, and its eyes are green. ….Hello? You get that? Anyone there?_ "

"Tony," Steve carefully said, still driving as he glanced over his shoulder. "Sif just went white as a sheet."

" _Guess that means she recognizes it._ "

"Fenrir," Sif whispered. "Impossible." Then she stiffened, hand going to her collapsed sword at her side. "Iron Man, get everyone away from it now! Full evacuation, including all of your regular soldiers!"

" _I need some more detail_ —"

Sif snapped. "We couldn't kill it!" Steve stiffened, and Iron Man shut up. "When it ran loose before, it killed _thousands_ of humans and _hundreds_ of Asgardians! We threw everything we had at it, short of weapons that would've rendered your world uninhabitable! It took King Odin himself to wear it down so we could chain it! And even then…I was a young woman at the time, still too inexperienced to be allowed to fight, but I saw the devastation it left in its wake."

Vision's calming voice spoke up. " _Where did it come from?_ "

"Loki. He was experimenting with creating a new type of…battle hound, I guess that is how I would describe it. Loki hoped that such an achievement would earn King Odin's favour. I later learnt that not even our most learned elders understood what went so horribly wrong, but I would now guess it lay in Loki's blood.

"You see, he took a sample of the genetic material of an Asgardian named Tyr, who even then was the chosen successor to become the Commander of the Einherjar, our most elite warriors. Then he took a hair from one of Odin's personal wolves, Geri, whose name rightfully means 'the ravenous.' Finally, Loki added his own blood to the merging of magic and science. Unfortunately, he believed he was an Asgardian as well, when in fact he was a Frost Giant." She paused. "Your 'mythology' got many details partially right, although I doubt the 'Giantess' was a reference to Loki's status.

"Regardless, the result was a hybrid of an enhanced animal, and two of the mightiest beings of the Nine Realms. It was born as you see it now, with both an insatiable hunger, and inherent skill at dealing out death.

"Mindlessly it struck out in violence at everyone around it, nearly killing Thor and Loki from the beginning."

" _So, its own strength and durability are an enhanced version of what Thor has_ ," Vision theorized.

"That is part of it. The other problem is its ability to seamlessly convert matter into energy and back again."

"… _I'm sorry_ ," Tony incredulously broke in. " _Could you repeat that?_ "

Taking a deep breath, Sif explained. She could tell that Tony Stark was now coming to understand the horror they faced, while Steve was just starting to catch on. "What inspired your myths about how Fenrir's wide mouth could swallow the sun and earth, was that it can eat anything and instantly convert it into energy, which is then reformed into bio-matter to heal itself. People and animals are merely its preference. Dirt, rocks, weapons, anything that it can bite down on, will instantly be used to refresh it.

"I'm sorry Thor and I never told you. We assumed that this was a part of Asgard's history that was buried, and needed to stay that way."

There was a pause, and then Tony spoke again, audibly irritated. " _Sorry, I'd like to talk to you more about that, given how it's what we're going to be_ fighting. _But given what you've just said, is there any chance of the cavalry coming to Vegas again?_ "

Frustrated, Sif shook her head, even though she knew Tony could not see. "Unless they received word what happened, and if the war with Thanos continues, then _I'm_ Asgard's aid."

" _Wonderful_."

 **XXX**

En Route to Las Vegas

Government Registered Quinjet

Tony felt like banging his head against the side of the plane. Unfortunately, sometime in the last few years he had developed a sense of responsibility, and he just _knew_ if he took the time to do that, then something would go horrifically wrong while he was not paying attention, and he would not get a wink of sleep for the next few months due to the ensuing nightmares.

With a thought, his faceplate lowered down, demonstrating he was ready for action, but giving him time to consider their choices in privacy. For in reality, he was verifying if nuclear weapons were a viable option before one of the politicians freaked out and ordered a strike.

If he grabbed onto an active, flying nuke for a _second_ time in his life, especially without a convenient wormhole nearby, Pepper would _kill_ him!

Worse, she might send him to a professional therapist.

He refused to consider her dumping him.

Recognizing his friend was stalling for time, Rhodes spoke up. "So Fenrir is a confirmed hostile then. If something like that killed thousands of people before, we're not giving him another chance. Especially if we can't reason with it."

"If his regenerative factor requires feeding off of matter," Vision offered, "we could try carrying him into space."

"No way it's that easy," Falcon informed them.

(What would be really convenient right now was someone who could form portals to elsewhere. Alas, something that convenient would have to be magical. Which is silly, because magic is make believe.)

(That part about Fenrir being made by magic was just a fancy way of saying 'technology too advanced for you to understand.')

(Right?)

" _Too bad we don't have Scarlet Witch_ ," Clint piped up. " _She could lift it safely from a distance while one of you carried her as high up as she could manage_. _Or put it to sleep with a thought._ "

Rhodes shot the archer a sharp look, wondering if the super-spy was fishing for details on his surrogate daughter's location, or knew where she was and was angling for something to earn her a pardon, or was playing some other game.

" _Hmph. Well Black Widow wouldn't be much help, but maybe the Hulk and this monster could kill each other. Save us the trouble_ ," one politician observed with a projected air of wisdom and authority.

" _Pffph, they'd probably join forces_ ," another snapped.

" _What I'd like to know_ ," another cut in, " _is why is it here? We're told it's a mindless beast that Asgard chained up. So why is it in Vegas?_ " Finally, a senator who seemed to deserve his position.

"Sif? Anything to contribute?" Tony asked as he finished multitasking.

" _A moment_." They patiently waited, and then she spoke up again. " _The Dwarves were the ones who forged the chains and its prison, so they were judged the best to house it, along with a detachment of elite warriors. I cannot believe that it could have broken loose and destroyed their world without warning reaching us, unless it had assistance. No, if it really is Fenrir, then the fact that it has somehow appeared here and now without any warning, is too great a coincidence. Someone must have freed it, and lured it here._ "

"Well, great," Tony muttered. "And for the record, nukes won't work." Then he e-mailed the politicians a massive file detailing the loss of life, economic and environmental fallout, and the likely international response if the US started deploying tactical nuclear weapons on their own cities. As they received his research, he idly noted how about half of them seemed to have already received messages of some sort on their phones, despite this being a confidential meeting, where personal means of communication should have been confiscated.

" _What about the orbital weaponry? Can't we use the defense satellites to fire upon it from space?_ " one politician offered, seeming distracted. " _The Asgardians probably didn't have them_."

"No, sir, all they had was the Bifrost to handle that," Tony said, dripping sarcasm. "As for our _defense_ satellites, your committee said something or other about making sure they couldn't be used to fire _down_. So no, that won't work."

" _Mr. Stark. Iron Man_ ," a politician, clearly ex-military, broke in before anyone could take offense. " _How confident are you that you can address this threat?_ "

"We're Avengers, sir," Iron Man said with steel. "We'll get the job done. Always."

" _If we might offer an alternative?_ "

The Avengers stiffened as a new communication screen popped open on its own, revealing the faces of Phillip Coulson and Robert Banner.

" _We have some experience with advanced technology after all._ "

 **XXX**

Las Vegas

Confused, Fenrir sniffed the air some more, before set off again at a slower pace towards where it smelled the most concentrated smell of the inhabitants.

 **XXX**

En Route to Las Vegas

Government Registered Quinjet

"What do you want?" Iron Man growled, even as he took note of how oddly quiet the various politicians were suddenly being. _Great, some of them are being blackmailed or bribed by the Appendix._ Given the level of electronic sophistication available to them, it would be child's play to play an Ultron and merely alter banking records to go either down or astronomically up. It was not universal though, as a noticeable minority of them were clearly suspicious of their colleagues' atypical, passive behaviour, and were choosing to just observe before they made any moves.

" _Given what we've already heard_ ," Robert shamelessly said, " _this is a super-beast that is nigh unstoppable. An apex predator created from the pinnacle of what Asgardian technology can achieve. Imagine if it could be used to target Thanos? Also, it is a powerhouse that our future projections have not accounted for. It benefits no one if the Avengers are killed, and Nevada is turned into a wasteland._ "

"You mean your Magic 8 Ball doesn't work on it, and that makes you afraid," Iron Man drawled, raising his faceplate to glare at them.

" _Not for long. While we haven't had experience using our mind control on Asgardians, we have with other advanced races. Specifically Dark Elves. Our sole remaining specimen will survive long enough to attach a device that will take control of it. To do so however, we need your cooperation to make it work, otherwise either we'll be getting in each other's way, or our agent won't be able to get close long enough to pull it off._ "

 **XXX**

Entering Nevada

"How much do you want to bet that it's the same Dark Elf Kurse warrior you were warning us about?" Steve grimly asked Sif.

"Given how the evidence indicates that the Hulk was originally based off of them, fairly high," she agreed through gritted teeth.

 **XXX**

[Flashback]

 _Face bloody yet determined, Thor stared down the approaching figure of Algrim, now larger, hulking with muscles as spikes jutted out of his body. Raising his hand towards his foe, the Thunderer called forth his mighty weapon._

 _Sure and true Mjolnir flew towards Alrgim to strike him down from behind, yet almost without pause the Kurse backhanded away the hammer forged from the heart of a dying star._

 _Unhindered, the Dark Elf proceeded to beat Thor as he lay on the ground._

 **XXX**

Present

"So they might pull it off," Steve concluded.

"Indeed. Which would make the situation worse."

 **XXX**

En Route to Las Vegas

Government Registered Quinjet

Tony Stark glanced at his own politicians who were keeping quiet, King T'Challa who remained detached from the situation, and finally laid his eyes on Hawkeye. _Oh how I wish I could just ask if the cavalry is going to show up. But comms are clearly compromised._

Throwing a quick look at General Talbot, the metal face of Iron Man slammed back down. "Okay, it's a deal. How do you want to play this?"

" _We knew you'd see reason_."

 **XXX**

Half an hour later

"He's definitely taking a more cautious route," Falcon observed as they watched satellite surveillance of Fenrir, while tapping his fingers.

"From what Sif's said, he's spent the last few centuries locked up in a box," War Machine pointed out. "Probably overwhelmed by all the unfamiliar scents and such."

"Get ready ladies, we engage in five!" barked Iron Man.

War Machine's faceplate went up. "Tony," Rhodes said in a voice that clearly said 'not cool.' "What've I told you?"

"I don't get to use military lingo," he answered in the tone of a chastised child.

"That's right," War Machine said as his face slammed back into place.

Turning back to the computer screens, Iron Man observed how King T'Challa and Hawkeye had signed off while he was distracted.

" _I'll let you go now_ ," Talbot said. " _Heavens know you can't afford to be distracted_."

Fortunately, the politicians got the hint, except for one of the ones who had been quiet the whole time; sitting back and taking in what was happening. " _Iron Man_ ," he suddenly spoke up, " _do you think those gentlemen who contacted you could try a different approach?_ "

"Like what, sir?" Iron Man asked with a guarded tone.

" _Am I incorrect in the assumption that they could turn our soldiers into hulklings, temporarily, to fight Fenrir? Is it a viable course of attack?_ "

Automatically Iron Man registered the reactions of the men and women who were with the one speaker brave enough to speak up. Particularly the ones betraying themselves by freezing up.

"…I don't think so, sir," Iron Man answered after a brief moment of hesitation. _Note to self: Keep an eye on this one._ Clearing his throat, he elaborated. "The soldiers would be too confused by their rampaging emotions, we'd have no idea what would happen. And if they have a way to create a mentally stable gamma super-soldier, then it must come with too high a price for them to use it on themselves. They aren't the type to trust anyone else enough to give them that sort of power."

" _I see. Thank you. Good luck, Avengers_." Then the man switched off the screen from his side.

 **XXX**

Las Vegas

Appendix Jet

" _I see. Thank you. Good luck, Avengers_." Then the man switched off the screen from his side.

"Someone to watch out for," Zemo said, deciding it was best to appear as if he were contributing. "Once this is over of course."

"Hmph, no worries," Robert confidently assured him.

Their cloaked jet settled down in an open lot, only a few blocks away from Fenrir's predicted path. While crude by Robert and Phillip's standards, for Zemo it was clearly years more advanced than anything even Tony Stark could build, with a Dark Elf cloaking device installed; not even the great Asgardian Heimdall could see them now.

Given how cramped it was inside though, they had all stepped outside with their main gear.

"We'll probably lose the Dark Elf," Phillip says with a touch of regret. They had brought both cryo-pods with them, and he was standing over the one holding the alien in question, looking through the little window to see the frosted being within. "Let's just hope we get an upgrade to an actual Wolf God."

"Are you going to use him, or cut him open to figure out how his power ticks?" Zemo asked.

"Huh," Robert stopped in thought. "I hadn't thought of that last idea. Hmm…"

"Well, let's not count our chickens until they hatch," Phillip reminded them. "We still have to wake this guy up, and put Fenrir under our control." He reached forward to begin the procedure to deactivate the pod—

"Hands in the air!"

Whirling around, they saw they were surrounded in a semi-circle by armed soldiers in urban camouflage. Trying to run back inside the plane was clearly not an option.

"I'm getting old," Phillip sighed in a tone calculated to help deescalate the situation. "Can we help you gentlemen?" he asked, while putting his hands on his head.

"Who do you think you are!?" snapped an enraged Robert.

"Captain Casey Ryback, US SEALs," the soldier in charge answered. "My orders are to take you terrorists into custody."  
"There's been some sort of misunderstanding," Phillip tersely said. "We're working with your superiors."

"No, you aren't," SEAL Captain Ryback calmly corrected. "Tony Stark doesn't speak for the US government, and none of our duly elected officials said anything to confirm his words. Neither did General Talbot, except he knew Mr. Stark was only baiting you to this location."

Something caught Phillip's attention, and he saw one SEAL near the back holding a sophisticated scanner _. Iron Man must've found a way to track us through our cloaking device!_ Clearly they had underestimated the man, especially since he had been killed in the process of saving New York in their timeline. There being no Hulk to save him after all.

Captain Ryback went on. "More importantly, you're wanted under suspicion for the deaths of a lot of our fellow soldiers, and some of them were friends of mine. Not to mention a host of other crimes. So I urge you to cooperate and come quietly, or I won't be held responsible for what happens to you."

"You don't know what you're dealing with," Robert angrily threatened. He was further incensed when the SEALs gave no reaction, being more professional than that.

 **XXX**

Las Vegas

Temporary Military Headquarters

"Checkmate," Talbot said with a self-satisfied grin. The man had just arrived in Vegas, and felt he had timed it perfectly.

Once Stark managed to lure the Appendix into complacency like that, it had become too easy. From his private, secure chats with the leader of the Avengers, Talbot had been all but eager to bring those madmen in. This would take a dangerous wildcard off the board so they could focus on the furry one. There was even a chance they could –safely, with due caution— use their technology to handle the super-wolf.

Then he took a mental step back to ensure he had not missed anything.

 **XXX**

"And not another word from you guys," Ryback coolly added. "Being a mad scientist and ex-spooks, I don't want you setting anything off. Lieutenant Nate, cuff them. As for your Miranda Rights: you have the right to remain silent. You _will_ remain silent because I think you are a genuine threat otherwise. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to an attorney. If you cannot afford an attorney, one will be provided for you. They will help you address the fact you are not allowed to indicate you understand what rights I have just read to you."

 _Very good_ , Zemo praised. _Just not good enough._

There was a reason the Sokovian had not entertained killing the time travelers and taking their gear after all.

The last cryo-pod was deceiving. It worked at a low enough temperature to preserve the flesh perfectly, yet the electronic systems still functioned automatically. Each and every device with a shred of processing capacity that came within range was hacked without discrimination.

Street cameras. The supposedly secure Stark Industries cameras the SEALs were wearing to send live intelligence to their superiors. Even one on a car's dashboard.

Then the raw data was processed.

+++Threat detected+++

+++Initiate functions+++

+++Primary Objective: Terminate+++

A single electronic command was given, and the doors to the pod swung open, while the figure within stood up with a smooth grace.

The escaping steam from the sudden release cloaked them in an ominous shroud, yet that was not what made the SEALs hesitate despite their training.

Despite everything they had prepared for, it was only now that the world comprehended the nightmare that was the Appendix.

The limbs were made of an oily, black metal. While the legs were functional, the feet ended in three claws, while the heel had a stiletto that was unquestionably pointed.

It was the hands that one noticed next however, as they were larger and longer than a humans', with fingers twice as long as normal, absently moving. They resembled black spider legs more than anything.

A tightfitting leather suit over skin as pale as death.

It was the eyes that told the full story of what they faced. They were cybernetic, placed into corpse's face, with green LED lights in place of pupils.

The corpse of Natasha Banner.

Idly Robert Banner stroked a curl of her pristine hair, the cyborg unresponsive. "My wife had been dying for some time, and I was unwilling to let her go. So I took preparations for when her suffering was finally over. I rebuilt her while her brain was still warm. Accessing what her life had imprinted upon it, to retain all those memories and skills."

The smile turned demented now. "All the abilities of the Black Widow, but enhanced beyond anything she was ever capable of while alive. The perfect Wife!"

 **XXX**

Arriving in Vegas

Government Registered Quinjet

"I am going to kill him," Iron Man stated. "I am going to kill him, and then I am going to get wasted until I never remember this day."

Falcon was too green to say anything, while Rhodes was muttering a prayer.

Frowning, Vision shook his head. "I am feeling emotions I've never felt before. Including the desire to also become intoxicated."

"We're calling it the Cyber Widow for the duration," Iron Man said. "I'd come up with something catchier, except there's no point if we're not going to be remembering any of this. After this we head straight for the nearest bar and don't stop till we forget."

 **XXX**

Las Vegas

Phillip and Robert watched with clinical detachment.

"Open fire," the admittedly savvy Captain Ryback said, while unloading his own assault rifle.

'She' was already moving before he could get a clear shot having analyzed the man's body and facial language. Alive, she could have reached a conclusion from that information, and acted before he had finished saying 'open.'

Enhanced?

The Cyber Widow was moving before he opened his mouth.

Mechanical legs hammered the ground as she was within arm's length of them, knife blades coming out of the palms of her hands to slit throats. If they were just out of her range and she could not spare the time to focus on them, she cut off whole arms to take them out of the fight.

"EMP!" was the last thing Ryback snapped. A true SEAL to the last, through sheer will he ignored the gaping cut to his neck to pull out his sidearm to try and shoot her.

His hand was cut off as the Cyber Widow danced to kill two more of his men and women in a single gesture.

The last soldier managed to hit the EMP.

In a flash of light, the Appendix's jet crackled and died, along with most of their technology.

Cyber Widow never stopped moving.

"As if I wouldn't prepare for that," an insulted Robert hissed. His wrist computer was also still functioning, feeding him live data from his Wife. They were his masterpieces after all, and the plane had not been worth further attention. Their current setback notwithstanding.

Then her hands slapped down to her thighs, and magnets disengaged as she held up a P-90 submachine gun in each hand.

Without wasting time to turn around, she leapt fifteen meters into the air as the P-90s snapped back to point behind her, muzzles barking as she took out the second squad that had come in from behind. They had come around from the Appendix's blindside, disabling traffic cameras as they went; unfortunately, the Cyber Widow's computerized mind had picked up that fact, and knew they were coming. The final nail in all their coffins was that they had failed to both disable the last camera, as well as the ones they were still wearing, which let her 'see' everything necessary to kill them.

One bullet each between the eyes.

Landing upon the defunct jet, she turned as she landed to gun down a third squad. Deftly she moved across its surface, processing their movements at literally inhuman speeds to always calculate where they would be aiming so she could move to where they were not. Alive with purely organic arms she had been a crack shot with any gun, with pistols being her specialty, breaking both the KGB, HYDRA, and SHIELD records for marksmanship before being Enhanced. Thanks to her Husband, she could fire any weapon, at any range, with zero recoil.

What was the worst was her face. In life it had been expressionless from a cool detachment in battle. …Now?

The implanted eyes were the same, bright shade of green they had always been, momentarily fooling observers into believing they had a spark of a soul inside of them. It was the face that showed the truth however, not just pale and dead, but slack. Mouth hanging open a little from lack of muscle control as Robert Banner's obsession led him to overlook it. No expression, no thoughts, no remorse.

The Ultimate Assassin.

 **XXX**

Las Vegas

Government Registered Quinjet

 _The Ultimate Assassin_ , Iron Man dully thought. _And everything our Natasha ever feared of becoming_.

"Iron Man," Vision formally said. "What do we do?"

The armoured warrior visibly paused, before shaking his head in disgust. They had seen everything through the same camera feeds that the Cyber Widow had used. "Fenrir's still the biggest threat." He glanced at Falcon to show support and raise moral a little. "And thanks to bird-brain, we've got a plan." Then Iron Man pointedly waved his right index and middle fingers.

Falcon had been the one to silently come up with a way to communicate without the Appendix tapping in, or realizing the Avengers were coming up with a silent plan. While they had left the cameras that had clearly been hacked running, they had discretely moved their bodies or gear to create blind spots, which hid how they were either silently tapping out Morse code, or in Tony's case doing gestures, with his index finger serving as 'dot,' and the other as 'dash.' It was made easier by the fact that the eyes of three of the individuals were hidden by faceplates and goggles, hiding what they were looking at specifically.

They also had a viable plan now.

"The Appendix is at its most vulnerable," Vision pointed out. "Their means of escape disabled, and now we have evidence they are criminals from their actions. We may even have enough now to clear the names of the rest of our friends."

Visibly glancing at the sensors to show they were only thirty seconds away from engaging Fenrir, Iron Man placed a hand on Vision's shoulder to appear placating, knowing his friend still had issue with human emotions, and how they would influence the situation right now. "They're also at their most desperate. We failed to swoop them up in one go, so now they'll play all their cards to escape and win. Talbot can try to contain them, and they're stuck in Nevada while we bombard it with satellites and spy drones. That's all we can do for now, because we've got bigger puppies to fry."

 **XXX**

Hearing the sound of something large incoming right at him through sky, Fenrir barred his teeth in anticipation.

 **XXX**

 **Author Notes:**

 **I confess that descriptive work for Fenrir were aided by the werewolves in the Mercy Thompson novels, by Patricia Briggs. Do not let the covers fool you, they are surprisingly good books.**

 **Due to not being American, and my own lack of knowledge of geography, I was honestly surprised to discover that Las Vegas –or what was left of it— would be the closest major city for Fenrir. Place really cannot catch a break, huh?**

 **Anyone recognize where Casey** **Ryback** **is from? ;-P**

 **-0-**

 **Next Chapter: "Ragnarok Part 2: Death Comes to All"**

 **-0-**

 **Please Review, and I will get back to you!**


	40. Ragnarok--Death Comes to All

For better or worse, Marvel owns all of this stuff, not me.

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Many thanks to my wonderful Betas, Bobbie23, Jesuslovesmarina, and MasterQwertster, who write some pretty cool stories. Go read them!

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Chapter 40: Ragnarok Part 2:

Death Comes to All

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 _Previously: Thanks to the machinations of the Appendix, the Avengers were divided, with the government registered ones vulnerable to the organizations manipulations of the US government. Everything was thrown into chaos however, as Fenrir arrived on Earth. Imprisoned by the Asgardians as a nigh-unstoppable, mindless killing machine, it quickly made its way to Las Vegas._

 _Tony Stark had been in talks with General Talbot, ranking US politicians, King T'Challa, and Hawkeye during this. Upon receiving word of Fenrir, he gathered Vision, War Machine, and Falcon to go confront this menace. Captain America and Lady Sif also began making their way there, having heard the emergency broadcasts that Las Vegas was being evacuated._

 _Worried about how this would complicate their plans, the Appendix stepped forward to offer a way to use a mind controlled Dark Elf of theirs to place Fenrir under their thrall as well, citing they needed the Avenger's cooperation. Iron Man agreed, but this was a trap to lure the Appendix out for Talbot's soldiers to arrest them. This plan turned into a slaughter as Robert Banner revealed his final trump card: the body of his late wife, Natasha Banner, turned into a cyborg killing machine, possessing all the skills of the Black Widow, enhanced by mechanics; the Cyber Widow, as Iron Man dubbed the abomination._

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" _Ragnarok. It is the death of the gods and of all things, in the final battle against evil._ "

–Proteus, 'Fate of Worlds,' by Larry Niven Edward M. Lerner

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Las Vegas

The Appendix

Starting a sigh to demonstrate how unruffled he was, Phillip Coulson idly bent down to pick up one of the assault rifles the dead SEALs had dropped. He turned a hard eye onto Zemo, as Robert Banner was still admiring his 'Wife.' "We've got to get out of Vegas."

"We can't escape without Fenrir," the Sokovian bluntly informed him. "Satellites and spy drones will be searching for us everywhere, and with all these dead soldiers," –several platoons worth spread out in front of them— "they'll invoke the Patriot Act to stop and search everyone within a hundred klicks of the city. If Fenrir beats the Avengers, he'll go on a killing spree we'll probably get caught up in. If we have Fenrir under our thumb, then we can direct him as needed to cause chaos to cover our escape, or work out an arrangement."

Phillip considered shooting Zemo right now. He knew that what the man was really thinking was: 'If Fenrir kills the Avengers, then I've won.' Given how obsessively he listened to that recording of his family, Phillip rather suspected Zemo was a suicide case. Except that he would also be thinking: 'If Fenrir doesn't kill the Avengers, yet we then take control of the beast, then maybe I can kill these old men and direct Fenrir to finish the heroes off.'

 _Unfortunately, given how vulnerable we are right now, I need his help_ , Phillip irritably knew. _Robert won't be enough help here, and his 'Wife' is only really good for killing_.

Even Phillip had never gotten a straight answer from Natasha over whether or not the affection, and even love, she had shown the scientist, was sincere. A man capable of heart-melting affection, or bursts of 'anger management incidents.' However, Robert had clearly been obsessed with her, and that had only grown as Thanos tore down the world around them; his only remaining rock to keep him from spiraling into fits of rage. The longer they had stayed aboard the Dark Elf ship during their long voyage to return to Earth, the more erratic he became as Natasha had slipped closer towards death, pouring his energies into finding a way to save her. Then later preserving her. Once he had…succeeded, Robert had stabilized. More or less.

To this day, Phillip Coulson neither knew, nor wanted to know, if Natasha Banner –a friend and protégé— had finally succumbed to her injuries from fighting Thanos…or had been helped along by her husband, impatient to start a new science project.

He also was unsure if Robert was only pretending to treat her as a tool to reassure others. Or if deep down the man genuinely thought the silent, mindless zombie was his wife, alive and well. And still loving him.

 **XXX**

Temporary Military Headquarters

"All-points bulletins are being distributed," General Talbot's aid reported. "With an emphasis on why they are such a concern even when we've got an extraterrestrial emergency already."

"Confirm SHIELD's informed," Talbot gritted out.

"Sir?"

"You heard me! They're lying low right now, but they can't afford to let those terrorists escape any more than we can! Right now we've got them contained in Vegas, and our soldiers have a perimeter around the entire city, and will be checking for IDs if they can. If they can't, it'll be because that bloody wolf will be right on top of them, so the Appendix will be dead anyways."

He stopped to take a deep breath to think the situation through. There was nothing he could do about Fenrir right now; he just did not have the firepower. He would leave that to the Avengers while offering support, focusing on getting the civilians to safety. The Appendix was made up of three men and thus killable and conventional explosives should be enough to tear that cyber zombie apart.

Despite himself, Talbot shuddered. He knew he would have nightmares about the metallic skeleton with the face of a dead woman, who was very much alive the last time he saw her, for weeks. He would have to kill _any_ smart ideas he knew certain people would have about replicating _that_ concept. Selling it as soldiers being returned to active duty after dying… Talbot honestly could not even think of words to describe how disgusted he was by the very thought.

"They've still got an alien of theirs –the Avengers think it's one of those Elves, right?— to order around, but they'll be keeping that close as a bodyguard to get them out of there. So any units that spot them are to fall back and report their location. We'll have to catch them in a crossfire with heavy weapons. Hopefully taking out the human operators will deactivate their drones."

Taking another look at the map, Talbot tried to get within Director Phil Coulson's head. The twisted version of the man he was up against was a different person, yet there should be enough similarities to work with. Audacious gambles were Director Coulson's preference, with careful preparations and contingencies in place to allow him to safely adapt as necessary. As exposed as the Appendix are, clearly guilty, and unable to contact the politicians they have under their thumbs, Phillip Coulson would try to quietly slip through, preferably with a large distraction. Fenrir would provide that, so they would be heading away from the battle that would be occupying everyone who could be otherwise searching for them.

"We're done acting as your puppets," Talbot muttered to himself.

 **XXX**

The Appendix

A lifetime –and defunct future— ago, the Dark Elf that rose out of the cryo-pod had been Algrim, chief lieutenant of the leader of the Dark Elves, Malekith.

Now brainwashing and cybernetic implants left him a mindless shell, while retaining all the powers and skills of a veteran, immortal warrior.

"Is it almost ready?" Phillip impatiently asked.

"Al- _most_ ," grunted Robert as he applied the machinery.

Zemo was standing back on guard alongside the Cyber-Widow, who ceaselessly turned around in circles to scan their surrounding with artificial eyes. Her endless repetition of that movement was making him a little dizzy just watching.

"Do you really think this will be able to get close enough to Fenrir?" Zemo asked. "What about the Avengers?"

"Algrim's programming will make sure he only moves when he has an opening," Robert answered. "If the Avengers can't kill Fenrir, then they probably wouldn't be able to kill Thanos anyways. So best we know now so we can start something new."

Pursing his lip, Zemo bobbed his head slightly in agreement, hiding his own enthusiasm.

Then he thought about other threats. "What about the other Avengers? The ones who are supposed to be criminals, but" –because Zemo knew all of them all too well— "will still come to help anyways?"

"Not a concern," Phillip dismissed. "Hawkeye's no threat, and King T'Challa probably won't even let him near us. From where they were calling Iron Man, Captain Rogers and Sif are still too far away, even with a military escort. Banner, Romanoff, and Maximoff are probably out of the country right now, and will never make it in time."

With a final tap of a few buttons on his wrist computer, Robert Banner activated Algrim. "One Wolf God, coming up!"

 **XXX**

Fenrir

Tony Stark was a firm believer in the subtle approach to solving problems.

It was just that his definition of the word 'subtle' differed from everyone else's.

His response was: 'the whiners aren't imaginative enough.'

Streaking towards Fenrir, the Avenger's Quinjet opened fire with its entire arsenal.

Pulling back its fangs in a leer, Fenrir endured it without a qualm, the assault being even less powerful than what the military copters tried before.

"Nighty, night~" Iron Man sang, coming up from the opposite direction as the Quinjet.

All four flying Avengers opened fire with dual wielded tear gas grenade launchers they had liberated from a nearby police station. As Falcon had pointed out, if Fenrir was some sort of super-wolf, that meant super-senses too, right? As an additional precaution, Tony's newest flying drones, remotely operated by him, shot grenades carrying airborne tranquilizers.

Fenrir glanced down at the canisters surrounding him, and flexed to leap away—

And smacked into metal as a cage slammed down around him.

An improved version of the Veronica cage meant to hold the Hulk, and shot down from space, additional panels deployed around the sides to dig into the ground so there was no escape from that angle. Electricity played across the sides to discourage any attempts to break free, and it was airtight just as the tranquilizer and tear gas went off, fully concentrated on one individual.

There was a good chance Fenrir would just suck all of that in, but it was worth a try. Besides, that was what Plan B was for.

"Get ready," Iron Man ordered, preparing his length of chain as he, War Machine, and Vision took positions in an equal circle around the cage. The chain was standard military usage, which they had 'borrowed' from the local troops just before reaching Fenrir, with FRIDAY hacking military files and cameras to locate a handy supply.

Within the cage, the ancient beast roared its rage, before being cut off by a clearly audible hacking cough.

The cage shook as something slammed against it, and then the metal right in front of Iron Man started to flex outwards. As he caught sight of a claw poking through, he laid down the loop of chain. "Here he comes," he coolly noted. "And not as pretty a dance partner as the Hulk."

Suddenly the cage stilled, and the hero tensed for what he knew was about to happen.

In a ball of fur and fury, Fenrir tore his way out just as Iron Man took to the air with maximum thrust, trailing the chain behind him. Timed as only one with his experience and intellect could possibly manage, the loop of chain still on the ground tightened firmly around Fenrir's right back-paw.

With a yelp of shock the Wolf God was dragged into the sky, waving his other limbs helplessly.

"FRIDAY," Iron Man smoothly said.

" _Sealing ports for vacuum_ ," the AI reported.

"Good. Let's see it try to have a snack in space." Then he glanced down. "And seriously, fasting'll be good for you. You're clearly overeating already and need to shed a few pounds. Whooph."

In all seriousness, Fenrir was larger than a bear, and with a super-dense musculature like Thor. Translation, it was a heavy load.

Seeing the ground rapidly moving away, Fenrir stilled and then started to contort its body to look up.

The rest of the Avengers were having none of that.

Plates slid aside over War Machine's shoulders to reveal mini-missiles. More popped up over his right shoulder, while the turret over his left took aim. Automatic cannons extended on top and underneath each wrist, with his right knuckles now also sported a sonic cannon to disorient.

He unleashed it all without a word of warning.

Falcon was right behind, firing mini-missiles from his wrists and flight pack, machine pistols barking with everything they had. One had rounds like the storm War Machine was firing: the finest armour piercing rounds Tony Stark could produce. The other was incendiary rounds however, on the theory that a primal creature would be particularly disorientated by the fur on its muzzle catching fire.

What made Fenrir truly howl in pain however was the most powerful of the Avengers, no matter how much he regretted this violence, calling forth the fullness of his own power. The Infinity Stone in Vision's forehead glowed like the sun as the beam of energy began to carve into the wolf's side.

Ammo depleted, Falcon check his ascent, leaving it to the others, while he played spotter and coordinated with the military.

Then something flashed by his eyes. "Oh no."

Algrim rocketed by with a harness similar to Falcon's, except jets were attached. With an Iron Man style, white helmet on to provide air and shield against wind shear. Automatically the Avenger calculated the newcomer was traveling far faster than Iron Man was as he struggled with the weight of an angry beast.

"Guys, you've got a bogey on your tail! Unidentified!"

War Machine and Vision glanced down, and the synthoid's own senses instantly recognized the rapidly approaching individual's species from records. "It's a Dark Elf!" he tersely informed them, even as everyone else remembered their theory that the Appendix had one under their thrall. The technology of that jet pack also looked like nothing the alien race had been known to use before.

As if in response, Algrim tightened his grip on his Kurse Stone, and instantly the transformation took over, his body hulking out into a far more muscular form, with the helmet contorting and tightening over his expanding face to take on a skull-like visage. Despite this sudden increase in mass, his velocity was still significant.

Re-targeting to try and stop him, Vision and War Machine once more set loose with every weapon they had, with no effect against the Kurse Warrior's enhanced hide.

"Return your focus to Fenrir," Vision ordered, even as the beast was flexing itself to try and get at the chain. Iron Man was desperately waving the chain back and forth to keep it disorientated, and more importantly to keep its left back-paw's claws from tearing the links off. A fall from this height might finish it off, but they were still only three-quarters from the height that Loki had dropped Thor off the SHIELD Helicarrier, and by all accounts that would not be enough to end this.

Hardening his density as far as it would go, Vision shot himself right at the Dark Elf.

Algrim remained a veteran of the Dark Elf-Asgardian War though, and at the last instant adjusted his jet-pack to swerve to the side and backhand his fist against Vision as he went by. Spinning as he went off at an angle, the hero reoriented himself just as Algrim passed War Machine.

Distracted and looking the opposite way, Fenrir was unprepared as the Kurse Warrior slammed into it, snapping the chain, and sending them tumbling down towards the ground together.

"Why does that not look promising?" Iron Man muttered as he turned around in pursuit.

 **XXX**

The Appendix

"Come on, come on! Put on the mind control device," Robert growled as he watched the video feed from Algrim's perspective.

Zemo however caught something he found more important than he would have expected from himself. "Are they headed towards the refugees?"

"Oh," was all Phillip and Robert could say.

 **XXX**

Mid-Air

Fenrir's claws were furiously ripping rivets in Algrim's flesh that not even the Avengers could scratch. Unfortunately for the wolf, while it grappled as it fell with the Kurse, it failed to cut anything critical, as Algrim kept a forearm under the wolf's throat to keep those jaws away. Even so, he was visibly struggling.

At the very last moment as the approached the ground, Algrim reactivated his jet pack to abruptly brake them, the sudden stop feeling as if they slammed into a metal wall. Being prepared however, Algrim was finally able to slap the headset down over Fenrir's ears, tentacles sprung out to wrap around his head and neck, and it glowed a sickly green.

Fenrir froze.

Warily, Algrim threw the animal on top of the apartment building about a dozen meters away.

Then Vision rammed him.

This time the super-dense Synthoid connected, smashing the Kurse down to the ground, a few blocks away.

Falcon swept right by Vision to the streets below, stopping mid-air, hovering above some police officers and soldiers. The long stream of civilians they were helping to escort out of the city had stopped moving out of shock and fear.

"Keep moving," Falcon calmly ordered in his best 'commanding officer' voice. "We've got it under control, but you've got to get out of here before any more chuckleheads decide to crash the party!"

" **NOOOO!** "

They all flinched at the unearthly voice.

 **XXX**

The scream of pain and denial raced throughout the city, jerking even the Appendix to attention.

 **XXX**

Temporary Military Headquarters

"What in Sam-Hill," Talbot whispered as he turned in the direction of the voice.

 **XXX**

"You can talk," Iron Man deadpanned. He had flown at maximum velocity to hover a few meters away from the wolf, ready to take whatever action was necessary. A conversation had not been anticipated.

Fenrir was writhing on the roof of the apartment building, unable to control its –no, _his_ — limbs as they spasmed.

Then a hate-filled green eye turned upon him. " **I WILL NOT BE CHAINED! NOT BY THIS! NEVER AGAIN! I. WILL. BE. _FREE!_** "

With a scream of pain, his claws ripped off the controller.

Huffing and panting, Fenrir then turned his wrath and fangs onto Iron Man. " **This isn't like before, however long ago it was that your world has changed so much, even as the people remain the same. No more!** "

 **XXX**

The Appendix

"I thought it wasn't intelligent," Zemo murmured, as they all realized who was yelling so loud.

"That's what I thought too," a woman's voice answered.

The men whirled around, belatedly realizing the Cyber Widow was already staring in that direction.

Lady Sif's sword was drawn, and with her were Captain America and his Shield, Hawkeye with his bow pulled back and ready to fire, and Black Panther fully attired.

 _Blast it! My Wife's current priority index is set to keep Avengers alive, not attack them! And T'Challa wasn't doing anything aggressive,_ Robert realized, fingers already drifting down to make the necessary adjustments on his wrist computer. That possibility had already been considered and prepared for of course.

"You picked up Captain Rogers and Sif," Phillip said in surprise to Black Panther.

"We were already in communication with them, so it was easy to track their location when I was already flying to Vegas," the Wakandan King casually answered.

"Figured they'd like a ride to get to the party sooner," Hawkeye tacked on.

The Asgardian and super-soldier were wearing only hoodies and jeans, wielding their signature weapons, ready for a fight.

 **XXX**

Captain America was relaxed, even as he held his Shield in the perfect posture to defend or attack. Despite his weeks of inactivity, this was still as natural as breathing; especially with a team at his side.

He knew the men he was facing would be dangerous, but he was confident this team could handle them; it was the Cyber Widow he was worried about. Goodness knows, the Avengers were all intimately aware of how dangerous and terrifying Natasha Romanoff-Banner was on a good day, and this version of her was on another level.

This walking corpse was a monster, in every respect of the word.

It was unsettling to see that face so devoid of life. The unnatural sensation was enhanced when you realized that part of the prickling _wrongness_ you felt in looking at her was from how she was not breathing. Something which is so automatic to the living woman, and only noticeable now when it was absent.

Silently, the blades retracted into those metal hands, and then long claws came out of the tips of those spider-leg-like fingers.

"Surrender," Captain America ordered with all his considerable authority. "This has gone on for long enough, and you've been as big a threat to this world as Loki and Ultron were. This has to end."

"Is that why're you here, and not helping your friends?" Phillip asked, hands raised as if to surrender. "By the sounds of it, Fenrir's going to be more than they can handle."

"He must have changed as he remained locked up within his cell," Sif grimly agreed. Unspoken was the possibility that she and the rest of Asgard had been lied to about the creature. Such secrets had been kept before. "But that does nothing to alter the threat you pose, and one way or another this will be over very soon."

"Besides," Captain America confidently added. "Tony's got a plan, he always does. He just needs to play it without you messing it up."

Zemo was silent; eyes blazing with a cold hatred as he found himself powerless as he finally met the legendary Avengers and all their might in the flesh. He was under no delusions that his rifle could do anything more than kill Hawkeye at this point, and it was unlikely he would get the chance.

"We are trying to save the world!" Robert spat.

"No, you are a cancer," T'Challa quietly declared. "And this farce has gone on long enough."

Vibranium claws extended and stabbed for the corpse's throat to tear out whatever means was used to control the body.

 **XXX**

+++First Priority: Protect Husband+++

+++Secondary Priority: Survival of Wife+++

+++Target: Black Panther. Neutralization, Death+++

Uncaring and unfeeling, the black clothed hand was intercepted by the darker metallic claws of the Cyber Widow. Enough electricity to power several blocks crackled through the monarch as he shuddered and gasped, his advanced suit preserving his life at the cost of agonizing pain that merely delayed the inevitable as the living corpse leapt up with inhuman speed, twisting in mid-air to snare his neck between steel thighs.

Then she turned her attention to the rest of group of people in front of her, who only now started to attack, sidestepping an arrow as it did so.

+++First Priority: Protect Husband+++

+++Secondary Priority: Survival of Wife+++

+++Assessing: Avengers. Neutralization, Alive. If 60% Probability Of Violating First Or Secondary Directives, Neutralization, Death+++

The computerized mind instantly re-played all memories Natasha Banner had had of Steve Roger, Captain America, and Clint Barton, Hawkeye's fighting styles. Video from this new timeline, for both those two and Lady Sif, were also instantly processed and analyzed to predict their every move.

 **XXX**

Even through all of the horrors Steve had witnessed in his life, but he knew then and there that for as long as he lived he would never forget the sight and sound of King T'Challa's neck snapping.

More chilling was her –no, _its-_ face as it killed without emotion. Truly a tool of death, utterly obedient to its controller.

Still in motion before landing, the large sub-machine guns –FN P90s— were detached from its outer thighs and were firing soon as its feet were braced against ground. Captain America's shield snapped up, bullets pinging against it as the Cyber Widow's arms moved too fast for him to try and dodge. Fortunately, the Appendix had apparently seen no reason to give it something more sophisticated, and bullets never even scratched the paint.

Then the second P90 –which was not forcing him to cover himself— shredded his right foot with pinpoint accuracy.

Screaming, Rogers fell, and then two more bullets apiece were put into each of his upper arms.

 **XXX**

The human members of the Appendix had not been idle, taking off as their main fighter took care of the Avengers. Zemo had been tempted to stick around, yet he had a strong suspicion that the Cyber Widow would kill him before he could shoot more than one of them.

As he ran, he took stock of how Phillip had a strong lead over Robert, who was watching the video feed of the Cyber Widow's perspective, being streamed to the holo-screen on his wrist. Catching up, Zemo gently directed the distracted scientist into an alleyway so they were no longer following Phillip.

Seeing Captain America fall to his knees onscreen, Robert gave a sigh of satisfaction, even as he was relieved he had sent the proper instruction codes. Black Panther's death was regrettable, but unavoidable since he had not been registered as an Avenger.

Fortunately Captain America had not been enough of a threat to force her to kill him. They need the heroes alive after all.

Obediently, she reattached her guns to the magnets on her sides, and closed on her prey.

 **XXX**

Dimly Captain America took in the sight of Sif fighting against the ultimate assassin. Unfortunately, from the way it moved, he knew the Asgardian was going to be hard pressed. Cyber Widow clearly had all of the Black Widow's skills and combat techniques, yet possessed far greater strength and speed.

From what he could see, the Cyber Widow was anticipating most of Sif's attacks, side-stepping or ducking around them. A few times the thousand-year-old warrior had surprised the zombie, yet it deflected her sword by hitting it on the flat of the blade. More chillingly was how the Cyber Widow being careful to always keep Sif between itself and Hawkeye, who kept moving to try and get a shot.

On the offensive, the monster's feet were unsheathing and retracting concealed blades that could cut even a 'god's' flesh, and with each strike crackling electricity flared into the alien, turning her clothes into an inferno, the smoke biting at the Asgardian's eyes.

Finally Sif got an opening, sword stabbing through Cyber Widow's gut, but the dead paid it no heed and grabbed the offending wrist. Such continuous energy surged into Sif that the Captain could momentarily make out her skeleton, just as rigid metal fingers jabbed her in the throat.

The claws retracted the instant before contact, traumatizing rather than piercing the windpipe.

Gagging and electrocuted, Sif was helpless before the metal fist that repeatedly pile-drived into her forehead before she fell.

Casually snatching up the alien blade, Cyber Widow dodged around Hawkeye's arrow with equal ease and flung the weapon with such precision that it cut solely through his bow, whipping him with the snapped string.

That briefest distraction was all that was needed for the zombie with the face of his best friend to appear right in front of Hawkeye's face, and give him a lesser dose of electricity to bring him down.

Roaring as he ignored the pain from the bullets in his arms, Captain America let loose with his trusty shield, flinging it with all of his might in one final effort to end this.

It never even moved.

The Vibranium shield ricochet off its head with merely a flare of sparks.

Before he was tasered too, Captain America saw that the only damage he had done was to tear away some of the flesh, and expose a metallic glint underneath.

 **XXX**

A minute later, Zemo and Robert returned, with the former eyeing the Cyber Widow who was now standing still. _A third of the Avengers are helpless. How do I use this?_ He would be as patient as necessary to achieve his vengeance so he could destroy them all.

Robert was completely oblivious to this as he approached the battle aftermath.

 _Perfection_ , the scientist thought with rapture. Then frowned as he remembered his dead wife.

 **XXX**

[Flashback]

 _Paris_

 _They were on the Eiffel Tower together as part of their honeymoon, a few months after Loki's attack. A moment of peace, with the entire restaurant to themselves._

 _Natasha was framed by the sun setting behind her, hair waving through the air as she laughed, with an undefinable sparkle in her emerald eyes._

 **XXX**

Present

He brushed aside the pang of grief over that, and guilt over failing to save her. The poison had been a final parting gift from one of Thanos' pet monsters, and had continued to corrupt her as it wasted away her organs. In the end, all that Robert had been able to grant her was release from the pain.

 _I just wish that she'd been able to see Earth one last time_.

 **XXX**

Apartment Rooftop

Iron Man held up his hands in a placating gesture. "Look, this is all just a big misund—"

Fenrir lunged, just as Vision appeared before him, Infinity Stone flashing.

A wolf bigger than either of them tanked through the energy blast, pinning Vision down.

One artificial hand snapped up to grab Fenrir's throat to keep him at bay, raising his density to make it harder for the claws to pierce his Vibranium enhanced flesh. Using Vision's own momentum, Fenrir brought himself directly down onto the hero, while a paw lashed out to smack the hand away while it was at an awkward angel. Then his fangs closed in.

At the last moment Vision reversed his density so he was intangible, even as a blue glow came from Fenrir's throat.

The Wolf God's jaws closed down on Vision's shoulder, and the Avenger screamed in agony as Fenrir reared his head back. A bite-sized chunk missing from the hero.

From a jaw that could have swallowed Vision's head whole.

What remained of his left arm fell to the ground, and circuitry sparked while liquids leaked out. Only a reflexive twist from Vision had kept his neck intact.

"Enough!" Iron Man roared, opening up with his Unibeam and both hand repulsors, missiles flying.

Miraculously it pushed Fenrir back…and then in a blur he was upon Iron Man.

It was like fighting the Hulk, except with claws and fangs over fists, and as rusty as Fenrir might be after centuries of captivity, he had slain hundreds of Asgardians in his youth.

Using his repulsors to make himself move faster, Iron Man ducked under the first claw swing and fired with his right leg repulsor at the ground where Fenrir was about to put down another paw, making his foot go through and trip.

With lightning speed Fenrir turned to shoulder slam Iron Man to the ground, who rolled away just before the fangs took off his arm too. As it was, the blue glow from the wolf's throat stripped off most of the armour on his left forearm, taking that weaponry out of the fight.

The Avenger returned the favour with mini-rockets and flares right into Fenrir's eyes, and a maximum Unibeam shot right at the throat. Despite his temporary blindness, Fenrir sidestepped left away from the last attack, relying on how Iron Man was less armed from that side…as the hero had counted on.

Right arm crossed over his chest to make the shot, his perfectly aimed miniature laser bored right into Fenrir's eye socket and into the brain pan.

With a groan Fenrir collapsed to the ground.

"I'm going to have to paint a little wolf silhouette on my suit," Iron Man smugly said, turning to help Vision, who he could hear moaning in pain.

Then Fenrir's jaws closed down on the ground his muzzle was laying on. Matter was swallowed and instantly converted into energy, and then reformed from building materials into bio-matter which reformed the damaged part of his brain.

Instinctively Iron Man coated Fenrir with a detailed scan, and took special note of a feature in the spine. "Ah. Redundant nervous system." Laser drained, he fired at Fenrir's back with his repulsor, even as the Wolf God continued to consume the roof with lopping bites. Iron Man's eyes hardened as he saw all of Fenrir's earlier damage disappear. _This monster's healing faster than I can hurt him!_

Then Fenrir was upright, glaring at the hero with vengeance.

Despite this, Iron Man maintained his position hovering there, as opposed to taking to the sky. _If I can't move him, then I've got to keep him occupied here until Falcon can evacuate everyone else. I've got to hold on just a little—_

Bullets flew into fur as War Machine finally caught up; once more firing with everything he had to buy his buddy an opening.

Almost without flexing his legs, Fenrir reared backwards, grabbed a groaning Vision's foot with his fangs, and swung him through the air at War Machine, sending them both flying. A flash of blue light as he did so, and Vision's foot breaking off and disappearing down Fenrir's throat.

Then without having time to react or preempt Fenrir, Iron Man was on his back with the oversized wolf straddling him, claws digging into his flickering Arc Reactor. " **Enough games. This ends now** ," he growled as he lowered his jaws.

 **XXX**

The Appendix

Across the street from where Cyber Widow had torn apart the Avengers, there was an old apartment building. Made of brick, with a bad scent that lingered despite whatever the manager claimed. It wasn't the best neighbourhood in Vegas; or at least that was how it had been before the _first_ super-powered brawl in-town, and it now had the luxury of being one of the buildings that was still intact.

Up in a window several floors up, Natasha Romanoff-Banner, the Black Widow, watched through her sniper scope from her vantage point. _What would a couple's therapist say about this?_

Then she took a soft breath as her finger lightly tightened around the trigger.

 **XXX**

 **Author Notes:**

 **I readily admit that it was this chapter quote that first sparked the idea for this arc. The desire for some way to use it :-P**

 **-0-**

 **Next Chapter: Ragnarok Part 3: The Only Thing Necessary for the Triumph of Evil…**

 **-0-**

 **Please Review, and I will get back to you!**


	41. Ragnarok--The Only Thing Necessary

For better or worse, Marvel owns all of this stuff, not me.

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Many thanks to my wonderful Betas, Jesuslovesmarina, Bobbie23, and MasterQwertster, who write some pretty cool stories. Go read them!

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Chapter 41: Ragnarok Part 3:

The Only Thing Necessary for the Triumph of Evil…

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 _Previously: The Avengers fought against Fenrir using information Lady Sif provided, and may have succeeded in subduing the Wolf God if not for the actions of the Appendix. Eager to enslave Fenrir, they sent their thrall the Dark Elf warrior Algrim to apply a mind control Fenrir. The attempt failed, and revealed that instead of being a mindless beast, Fenrir was in fact fully intelligent, and now seriously angry. He easily bested Vision and War Machine with his powers, and prepared to kill Iron Man._

 _With the Appendix, they were confronted by Captain America, Lady Sif, Hawkeye, and the Black Panther. They fought the Appendix's final weapon, the cybernetically enhanced corpse of the Natasha Banner from their defunct future timeline, and lost._

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" _There is a difference between me and you. We both looked into the abyss, but when it looked back, you blinked._ ''

–Batman to Owlman, "Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths"

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Las Vegas

Black Panther's neck was broken.

Captain America was unconscious from an electrical shock, a mangled foot, and bullets lodged in his arms.

What was left of Sif's clothes were still smoldering, and already bruises were appearing on her bleeding face as she lay motionless.

Hawkeye's broken bow lay beside the tasered man.

Some of Earth's mightiest heroes, and they had barely managed to scratch their assailant.

The animated corpse of Natasha Banner née Romanoff, from a future that would never be. Limbs replaced by metal arms and legs with concealed weaponry, while green cybernetic eyes stared out of that lifeless face. Her mind a computer merged with her preserved and still-warm brain, containing all off the skills and knowledge the Black Widow had known in life, now augmented by software that could review every move her opponents had ever made, and anticipate them.

The Ultimate Assassin.

She was just standing still now, awaiting orders from her creator, Robert Banner, widower of Natasha Banner. The older man was enjoying the sight like a child opening presents at Christmas.

At his side was Helmut Zemo, who was also trying to think of a way to kill all of the surviving Avengers while they were incapacitated, without the Cyber Widow killing him before he even finished one of them off. On the other hand, there were other heroes still out there, and he suspected Robert already had some scheme in mind.

After all, these ones were helpless, and Iron Man's faction was fighting for its life against Fenrir, the boogeyman of Asgard.

Phillip Coulson had run as soon as the battle had begun, and Zemo had discretely separated Robert from his old partner. Now was the time to capitalize on the situation while the Avengers were at their most vulnerable.

Half were broken, and the other half were too occupied to interfere. Even better, Zemo was sure that with a few choice words, Robert could be persuaded to… _recruit_ Captain America, Lady Sif, and Hawkeye to the Appendix's cause. A tweak on how he had used the Winter Soldier, to destroy them once and for all.

He was so absorbed in these thoughts that Zemo forgot his training from when he had led EKO Scorpion, Sokovia's most elite paramilitary tactical unit, and covert kill squad. If he had remembered, and had not been so confident in the Cyber Widow's ability to monitor the situation, he would have taken better stock of his environment.

 **XXX**

Across the street from where Cyber Widow had torn apart the Avengers, there was an old apartment building. Made of brick, with a bad scent that lingered despite whatever the manager claimed. It wasn't the best neighbourhood in Vegas; or at least that was how it had been before the _first_ super-powered brawl in-town, and it now had the luxury of being one of the few buildings that was still intact.

Up in a window several floors up, Natasha Romanoff-Banner, the Black Widow, watched through her sniper scope from her vantage point. _What would a couple's therapist say about this?_

Then she took a soft breath as her finger lightly tightened around the trigger.

 **XXX**

With Fenrir

Having just healed himself from taking a laser beam to his primary brain, Fenrir was already upright on all four legs, glaring at the hero with vengeance.

Despite this, Iron Man maintained his position hovering there, as opposed to taking to the sky. _If I can't move him, then I've got to keep him occupied here until Falcon can evacuate everyone else. I've got to hold on just a little—_

Bullets flew into fur as War Machine finally caught up; once more firing with everything he had to buy his buddy an opening.

Almost without flexing his legs, Fenrir reared backwards, grabbed a groaning Vision's foot with his fangs, and swung him through the air at War Machine, sending them both flying. A flash of blue light as he did so, and Vision's foot breaking off and disappearing down Fenrir's throat.

Then without having time to react or preempt Fenrir, Iron Man was on his back with the oversized wolf straddling him, claws digging into his flickering Arc Reactor. " **Enough games. This ends now** ," he growled as he lowered his jaws.

"Sorry, still my turn, and I've got my lucky dice," Iron Man retorted.

Foot repulsors fired at emergency maximum, and he slid right out from under Fenrir, the wolf's ears twitched as he heard something break the sound barrier.

Twisting his head while Iron Man's feet passed under his chin, Fenrir had the briefest moment to register a distortion in the air coming straight at him.

Like the ultimate bullet, the Future Foundation's cloaked Quinjet smashed into Fenrir, tearing him off the top of the building and ramming him down to the streets far below.

"NEW HIGH SCORE!" Iron Man yelled after him.

 **XXX**

Elsewhere in Las Vegas

What had once been the elite Dark Elf warrior Algrim, and was now a mere drone of the Appendix, stomped forward towards his masters. During their fight, Vision had sent him flying into a district full of tall office buildings and apartments, even if it was now abandoned from the ongoing evacuation. He was in full Kurse form, with the white helmet on his face distorted into a skull.

With strength and durability beyond that of Thor himself, Algrim bulled right through whatever was in his way. Implacable, he would complete his—

A red glow surrounded him, and suddenly he was shooting up into the air.

"Please fasten your seatbelts," a cheerful, young voice said, as a sticky, white, web-like substance enveloped Algrim's head as he stopped to hover twenty stories above the ground.

Then the red glow threw him down, even as the web tensed and yanked him down with its own considerable strength.

Head first Algrim impacted the pavement before he could do anything, leaving a crater.

Even his implants were stunned as he tried to orient himself, just as he felt a relentless pounding on his head from two directions. It was not enough to damage him, nor hurt him due to his modifications, yet it still added to his disorientation.

Then more of the web enveloped him, covering him up.

 **XXX**

"Whew! That's done!" Spider-Man boasted as he stood at the edge of the crater.

"Don't get cocky," Wasp warned as she grew to her normal size. "He's not even injured."

"Seems to have done the job though," Ant-Man pointed out, shaking his sore hand.

All three were wearing modified versions of their original uniforms, carrying a few more high-tech options. Their gloves had also been altered to give extra padding to their knuckles, while also hardening their punches; they had been explicitly warned that holding back –as all three almost always did— could be fatal for themselves, and those around them. Hence why they had just given the Dark Elf everything they had.

"Where's Witch?" Wasp added, as she saw no sign of the Scarlet Witch.

"Helping the civilians," Spider-Man answered. "They're starting to panic, so she left to spread 'calm,' as she put it, with her powers. Especially since all these fights have gotten too close to 'em, so they probably need protection on site."

The others nodded, just as Algrim stood up.

"Yeah, no," Spider-Man flatly said, firing even more webs to bind up Algrim. "No pulling at my webs to tear 'em while I sit back and watch."

In response, Algrim called upon his other power, which the Appendix had not let him use on Fenrir for fear of hurting their 'prize.'

With perfect control, he released immense heat, burning off the webs.

"Well played," Spider-Man admitted, even as Ant-Man and Wasp shrank down to renew their battle.

 **XXX**

With Fenrir

Growling loudly in fury, Fenrir stalked towards the crashed Quinjet that was in a crater similar to the one it had knocked him into. _That_ had _hurt_. Nearly as much as having his brain fried. Nothing a little dirt and rock could not create bio-matter for however.

It was a testament to Tony Stark's genius that craft was even recognizable, the cockpit still intact.

Sharp ears picked up signs of life within, and Fenrir's jaws reached for the door to put them out of their misery.

A green fist smashed through the metal hull and sent the Wolf God flying.

 **XXX**

Iron Man's foot repulsors kicked the bucket just then, as his Arc Reactor finally died.

"Gotcha," grunted Falcon as he caught his fellow Avenger.

"He's late," Iron Man idly noted.

"You're seriously saying you knew he was coming?" Falcon sarcastically asked.

"Of course I did," Iron Man said, physically raising his face plate to glare over his shoulder to show how offended he was on his friend's behalf. "He's an Avenger."

With silent purpose that was nearly as bad as his roars, the Hulk tore himself the rest of his way out of the crashed Quinjet.

Then Iron Man rolled his jaw in a mild gesture of humility. "That said, it was really nice when I got that radio call that I just had to hold on a little longer for my Science Bro and Mean Green Bean to get here. Good thing Rhodey bought me that extra time. How's he doing?"

"Just fine," Falcon promised, lowering Iron Man to the pavement where he could help with crowd control.

 **XXX**

The Appendix

Across the Street

Through her sniper scope, Natasha took stock of the situation. Of particular interest were the _lack_ of injuries to the zombie's head, except for a gash in the flesh with a metallic glint underneath. _Possibly Vibranium._ Also that its suit was intact despite how it had released so much electricity that Sif's clothes were now nothing but ash,

 _An Asgardian, a supersoldier, a king with a Vibranium suit, and Clint all down._

 _The Motives the Appendix work by, and the Means they use to accomplish them. Opportunities available to both them and I. Extent of damage to that copy of me,_ she coolly assessed.

 _Weapons: Sniper rifle with anti-tank rounds, four sidearms, explosives, knives. Not enough. I'm outgunned and outclassed for tools really._

 _Layout of the terrain_ , her eyes swept across what was before her, even as she considered the layout of the building she was in.

 _Potential weakness of the copy: operator._

She lowered the rifle to make a rapid booby trap near the window, made some adjustments to her wrist gadgets, and picked up the powerful rifle again, tracing the crosshairs over to the sickening copy of her husband.

At the last moment she shifted back to her real targets.

Her gun made two muted coughs.

 **XXX**

The FN P90 is a powerful and compact weapon, but they were never designed to withstand the shattering force from the sniper rounds that rendered them into expensive doorstoppers.

Programmed to fight, not protect, the Cyber Widow was already on the move to attack the millisecond the damage registered, ocular implants locating the Black Widow from across the street and several floors up. Faster than any human alive, she crossed the distance and was climbing its way up the outside wall of the apartment building with mechanical strength and blades in all four limbs.

+++Target Assessment: Black Widow. Avenger+++

+++Current Threat Level: Neutralize, Alive+++

+++Target Preferred Tactics: Ambush+++

+++Evade+++

Ignoring the window its opponent was trying to use as a lure, the cyborg broke through the wall two floors down to avoid any surprises that may be planted, and then started to work up through the ceiling, hyper-advanced infrared sensors cutting through the countermeasures in Natasha's own suit to locate her.

The Target was fast however, having already been on the move, using the apartment stairwell to move down, and the Cyber Widow had to proceed cautiously for traps.

"For what it's worth, if there's still a part of you in there, I'm sorry about this, but I'll set you free from this torment," the Black Widow's voice rang out as she made her way down. "And only you already know how I'll do it: our suicide implant. I know you kept it from him."

 **XXX**

Half a block away

Robert Banner frowned at the video feed being streamed to the holo-screen on his wrist. After the sniper had shot out his Wife's gun, he quickly retreated back, meeting up with Zemo in the process about half a block away. A small part of him wondered why Black Widow was bothering when his Wife –who was the one sending him this information— was immune to such words. The larger part was unconcerned however, as nothing could get past his Wife. Before she had been the pinnacle of human fighting potential, and now thanks to him, she was so, _so_ much more.

" _Not even Clint or Fury know after all, and that's the way we wanted it. Especially if we ever wanted to use the explosive option, and they're the reasons you even approached your version of Bruce_ ," Black Widow's voice echoed up as she continued to run. " _Batting your eyelashes because SHIELD needed the world's foremost gamma radiation expert to deal with the Tesseract, and then needing someone of that genius to stay on. And then you realized he could give you what you always wanted. That his science could give you that impossible child_."

The old man's face became a death mask.

" _And then you died, and that sad excuse for a man did this to you. But if you can fight it, if deep down you've just been biding time for that one chance for freedom, for release, it's almost time_."

Hissing with fury, the deranged scientist used the holo-controls to input new orders, mind racing.

 _Nat told me everything! She wasn't playing me, she_ loved _me! And I wouldn't have missed something like that when I was giving her all of these gifts! You're just trying to manipulate me, and now you'll pay!_

+++Current Threat Level: Neutralize, Dead. First Priority+++

+++Husband Taking Manual Control+++

 **XXX**

A vibration made the Black Widow glance down at her wrist and almost smile and she barreled through a stairwell doorway and smashed her way through an apartment door while still being several floors above the ground.

Wakandan sensors she had left behind her scanned up and down from her sniping position, were sending back raw data, while Bruce's algorithms translated it to answer her very specific questions. They were not weapons after all, so Cyber Widow –like any fighter in the field— had not given them a high enough priority. Settings she set to automatically activate were also now in motion.

+++Incoming Signal to Target Detected. Jamming Active in 3… 2… 1…+++

Glancing over her shoulder, Black Widow saw the corpse of herself freeze for an instant. Except she knew that there was no way it was going to be that easy. _It's too sophisticated to hack, or to be left helpless if it can no longer receive communications from the operator. Intercepting and messing with the signal was never an option, but when it's this close, and with the toys Bruce and Wakanda gave me, I can block those orders, at least, forcing it to fall back squarely on its primary programming or verbal commands. Hopefully it's even focused squarely onto me._

That was why despite her temptation, she had not shot Robert Banner. If he died then they were left with a lethal weapon that no one could deactivate. Alive however…

Ever since the revelation of who they were up against, Black Widow had spent nearly two months putting everything she knew of the man through her mind, and had given Bruce some taunts to use when the two of them met. Knew how a man with such an abusive childhood and anger issues would dance. All the little details.

Someone like Robert Banner would never overlook such a contingency as integrating some sort of remote control into his personal necrophile cyber toy. Not just as a precaution, but out of his need to be in charge of his 'wife,' and everything else around them.

 _Add in the insecurities I've been trying to add in all this time…_

Then she threw an explosive charge at a wall, blowing open a hole upon impact, and leapt through.

 **XXX**

Half a Block Away

Zemo noted the dawning horror on his 'partner's' face as the holo-screen turned to static. "What does this mean?"

"She's still got her combat subroutines, except there's no oversight! No supervision to help her, or access to other computer sources for information, and stuck on her last working directives! She's vulnerable!"

A high pitch reached them despite how far away they were. "And Black Widow's activated a sonic weapon to distort sound, so we can't give directions in person!"

Hesitating for an instant, Zemo hefted his gun and raced back toward the fight between the assassins. _At this rate, Robert won't care if I kill Romanoff, or any of the Avengers after he's underestimated them so much. And even if she wins, fighting her cyborg, zombie self will leave even_ her _tired and distracted upon her moment of victory._

 **XXX**

Outside of the Apartment Building

 _Of course_ _,_ _she's also still adaptable_ , Black Widow almost groaned, earplugs securely fastened, running as she touched the pavement, leaving her grappling hook gun behind. Four stories above, the Cyber Widow was scuttling down the building walls on all fours like some perverted spider, digging into the masonry with her hands and feet that moved with immense speed at inhuman angles.

 _Almost there!_

 **XXX**

+++Target Assessment: Black Widow. Avenger+++

+++Warning: Target Approaching Weaponry. Listing+++

+++First Priority: Neutralize Black Widow. Dead+++

In the blink of an eye after her feet touched the ground, the Cyber Widow's electrified claws were a hairs breadth from the Black Widow's face…

…Impotent, as the Shield of Captain America soared into place before her.

 **XXX**

Black Widow had known that she could not win a one on one fight, and had never endorsed the concept of a fair fight unless it was to convince her _enemies_ of its virtues. The noise they made while rambling about the honour of such an idea, would make it easier for her to sneak up behind them after all.

In this case however, it was clear she lacked the firepower to win, but neither could she let the Appendix run free and kill more people.

Fortunately, she knew where to find the tools she needed to cheat.

Which was why she had led the Cyber Widow right back to where she started, amongst the unconscious forms of the fallen Avengers, including a metal symbol and weapon lying on the ground.

Nearly too late, she activated the electromagnet on her gauntlet, and the Shield of Captain America flew to her to secure itself to her right arm.

 **XXX**

It was now a one-on-one duel to the finish, yet Black Widow knew that there was no other choice. Not without inexcusably risking everyone else in Las Vegas.

Electricity from the Cyber Widow flared over the Shield, yet the suit that Bruce had made for Black Widow was also designed to be resistant against much worse so that she could safely use her own weapons; which was one reason she had been able to fight the Asgardian Lorelei with juiced up versions of her Batons

The Avenger was holding the Shield firm, except that Cyber Widow was keeping its left hand still pressed against the Shield to intentionally keep it there, while its right claw of a hand struck around it. Fortunately, Black Widow had anticipated this. _Even if I gambled right,_ Black Widow knew, _this is going to hurt._

Specific tension in her left forearms muscles switched on the electromagnets she wore over them at maximum power, gambling that the Cyber Widow had not been made of _non_ -magnetic materials. The sudden pull on the metal arm threw it off angle so that their arms were now stuck side-by-side from each other, the force of the impact nearly snapped Black Widow's arm despite of the reinforcement in her suit.

Ignoring the pain, she was already jerking around her left arm to keep the abomination off balance, denying it the leverage to use its superior strength properly, and she turned with the Vibranium Shield to ram its edge into the right elbow joint.

Electricity visibly sputtered from the wound, and the lower half of the limb went dead, just as Black Widow deactivated the magnets holding it there.

In the same motion, Black Widow's hand snaked out from under the Shield and her guns barked on automatic as Vibranium tipped bullets –also courtesy of Wakanda— took out the left kneecap.

Incapable of pain, the mechanical nightmare was already back on the offensive, its computerized mind adjusting to fight on one foot. Having regained some balance, it was able to utilize the pure strength of its remaining arm to hammer in rapid-fire blows to force the monster back, even spinning around at times to whip the lame yet still bladed left foot at her.

Yet no matter how fast as it was, it had still been damaged to the point that it could not get past the Shield and the Black Widow's own speed and reflexes.

Again and again she raised the Shield to block blows, letting nothing get past. Dropping her pistol to grab a fresh one to fire on semi-automatic even as the Cyber Widow dodged the shots.

 **XXX**

The concept of a fair fight had honestly never occurred to either of the two women who had over their lives been known as Natalia Romanova, Natasha Romanoff, Natasha Banner, or Natasha Romanoff-Banner respectfully. As has been noted, all of them were –or _had_ been, in Natasha Banner's case— firm believers of the theory 'It's not cheating if you win.' This included being willing to withdraw and reassess the threat if meeting with unexpected difficulties. Or threatening the lives of someone their target cared about to make them vulnerable.

Such as the unconscious Avengers scattered around.

+++Target Assessment: Black Widow. Avenger+++

+++Warning: Target Approaching Weaponry. Listing+++

+++Warning: Serious Damage to Self. Survival of Wife Second Priority+++

+++First Priority: Neutralize Black Widow. Dead+++

A computer program had no such flexibility.

 **XXX**

 _This is the dangerous part._

Back in the Red Room all those years ago, one of the many things that had set Natalia Alianovna Romanova apart from the other girls was her mastery of spatial awareness, a mental map in her mind of where everything was around her. How she could always accurately know where she had to be and how long it would take her and whomever she was fighting to get there.

 _No other way. It took the entire clip to take out the knee, and the head, the central processor, will have even more reinforcement. Too much for what few bullets I've got._

 _There's too much at stake if I don't take her down here and now._

She had never done this before, yet had observed Steve Rogers do it a thousand, thousand times, and she had mapped it out in her head. The Shield flew from her hand at the Cyber Widow, who ducked around it.

Still moving, Black Widow turned her back to her foe to run away.

Off-balance on one leg and from the sudden motion to evade, the Cyber Widow took two precious seconds to deploy a long, cold throwing knife, automatically balance it, and draw back its remaining arm to let it loose to pierce its enemy's brainstem.

Too little, too late.

Ricocheting off the wall that had always been Black Widow's target, the Shield of Captain America struck back into the Cyber Widow's spine, cutting into it. While it was still shallow with Black Widow's unenhanced strength, it was all that was needed to disrupt the neuro-circuitry within. Once again the body went limp, dropping the knife.

Its computer memory would have anticipated that from the genuine article, and automatically calculated the weapon's path. Black Widow had never done it before, so such algorithms had never activated.

At inhuman speeds, redundant mechanical systems bypassed damage that would have crippled anyone organic or alive, bringing up the remaining hand to brace its fall, optical implants already tracking for its prey.

Tireless. Self-repair mechanisms already at work. Heavily armed, and programming rapidly adapting to the situation, considering new possibilities. Undaunted.

Still too late.

Black Widow knew from how her own Bruce worked, that the spinal cord would have been just as reinforced as the skull, to ensure the body still worked. Her true goal throughout this entire fight had been to safely reach Hawkeye's quiver of arrows.

Knowing their layout as well as he did, she yanked out two specific ones to throw down in front of her, the impact splitting them open to project an electrical field to ensnare the leaping Cyber Widow with such power that would have rendered even Vision unable to move. More of the zombie's implants defensively flared to break itself free, yet the true Widow had her prey caught in her web now.

Two explosive arrows were rammed into the green 'eyes,' and the manner in which the corpse had flexed its body to strike in mid-air made it child's play to ram in four more from each hand, up through the gut and beside the heart. Electricity crackling over her wrists as the safeguards Bruce had installed barely resisted both Hawkeye and the Cyber Widow's respective electric fields.

Then despite the risk to herself, Black Widow risked grabbing her best friend to haul him safely back. Just before the arrows detonated.

Robert Banner's reinforcements to his Wife's corpse were the best he could conceive, with regular improvements. Not even all of that could destroy the 'mind' of his 'beloved.' Even the explosive driven arrowheads that had been stabbed through the optics were unable to pierce deeply enough to do any serious damage outside of requiring a rapid reboot that would only cost 0.8 seconds. Redundant sensors would allow it to fight even with the loss of its 'eyes' until self-repair functions fixed them.

But he had still been thinking too small.

The _rest_ of the explosion ripped apart his 'Wife's' torso, shooting the metallic skull and spine up into air to lodge into the wall like a bullet. It still had a redundant power source, yet was stuck and motionless. Defeated, even as flames consumed its carefully preserved red hair.

With all of its power, the Cyber Widow had indeed been the Ultimate Assassin.

Unfortunately, the Black Widow was not just co-leader of the Future Foundation; she was an Avenger.

 **XXX**

With Fenrir

It was a rare experience for both Fenrir and the Hulk: to stare directly into the eyes of someone as large and intimidating as themselves.

Two mighty, unstoppable beings barring their respective fangs and teeth at one another.

Fiery rage beating within his heart, Hulk made the first move, swinging a right hook that caught Fenrir by complete surprise even as the massive wolf tried to dodge, clipping his shoulder. Undaunted by the pain, Fenrir snapped at the offending arm, yet Hulk withdrew it.

Grasping for a swift victory, Fenrir threw himself right at Hulk's throat, who sidestepped to clothesline him with his right arm, and then whirl to hammer him down with his other fist while his enemy was still hanging mid-air.

Except Fenrir was tougher than anyone else the Hulk had fought, and despite the blow was already rolling away before Hulk could maneuver for a follow-up, and leapt back up, long fangs just missing the Avenger's throat, but not his shoulder.

Whether or not those natural weapons could have broken the Hulk's skin was immaterial, as his flesh dissolved into the mouth of Fenrir, taking away a massive chunk of his upper-left chest.

 **XXX**

Aftermath with the Cyber-Widow

Ever the pragmatist, Black Widow limped over to pick up Captain America's Shield first. As she hefted it in her hand, she tilted it so that she could watch the reflection off its back.

Snapping around, she blocked Helmut Zemo's desperate bullets, while her other arm's Widow Bite fired a Taser Disk to drop him. _Surprised it still works after all that abuse,_ she marveled. They would have been useless against the Cyber Widow.

It was only after a careful scan for Robert that she turned to check on her teammates, and was revived to find them still breathing—she did not bother with Black Panther, as he was clearly dead. While she was genuinely upset about that, Black Widow pushed aside such sentiments until Natasha Romanoff-Banner had the luxury to mourn.

It was only after that, she turned to address the audience that had formed.

She had registered their arrival, over twenty meters away, when she had been going hand-to-hand with her not-future-zombie. They had not shot at her, nor had they raised any guns at her yet, so she had dealt with greater priorities first.

"Why are you standing around!?" Black Widow snapped. Before her was a collection of civilians and soldiers, and now that their primary defenders were safe, she could address the issue of their charges—the Avengers could hardly save them if they were dead. "Vegas is still under attack!"

"Just enjoying the show," drawled General Talbot, wearing full tactical gear.

"Really? Is that what they're paying the US military for these days?" she sarcastically asked.

Talbot gestured at a squad. "Secure that man who was shooting at her." Then he addressed the hero. "Battle with Fenrir got too close to the Command Post, so we're on the move while getting these civilians out through another route. Is that guy," –pointing at Zemo— "with the Appendix?"

"Yes," Black Widow confidently answered, fishing out some Zip Tie Cuffs from Hawkeye's gear to slap onto Helmut Zemo. She recognized him from the 'tip' Robert had given the Avengers about a potential threat. While it had been a distraction to lure Bruce out of the Avenger's Compound, a Sokovian who had lost his family to Ultron would blame the Avengers, was sadly believable. Moreover, the best lies were the ones with a basis in the truth. She had investigated deeper and had been confident Zemo was a threat, and now it appeared he was also working for the Appendix.

Doubtless he had been a little too desperate to have his vengeance here and now, hoping Black Widow would lower her guard at the moment of victory.

As if she did not know when was the best moment to strike. That was half the basis of her favourite interrogation routine after all.

"If he seems to be regaining consciousness," Black Widow advised the soldiers, "knock him out again. He's with the Appendix, and therefore extremely dangerous."

Looking over his shoulder, Talbot now registered all the I-Phones taking videos, and the way some fingers were flying over the screens, he was sure that the more suspicious of them were quickly posting them as far and fast as possible so they could not be censored.

 _Not my problem_ , the general decided. _City-wide crisis, and super-wolf first. Along with some terrorists on the side_.

"Let's get a move on people! This isn't over yet!" he barked, and half-heartedly the Las Vegas citizens lowered their phones and resumed their brisk walk to safety –i.e. as far away from Fenrir as possible.

Then an angry man shoved his way to the front of the crowd. "What do you mean you aren't going to kill him!? You're the Black Widow! That's what you _do_! And why aren't you soldiers arresting her!? She's a wanted criminal!"

 _There's one in every crowd_ , Natasha sighed to herself, even as her expression remained blank.

"She also just took down something that massacred good men and women," Talbot coldly informed the stranger. " _My_ men and women. Or did you miss the bodies?"

The man flushed, yet then Black Widow spoke up. "Thank you general, but I can defend myself." She tapped her wrist computer, and entered a few new commands, even as she continued to face and address the crowd—and their phone's video cameras.

"I know what the media's been saying about me, and why the government thinks I'm responsible. The truth of the matter is, I did kill all those soldiers in Las Vegas." Gasps were heard, and several soldiers aimed their guns at her. "Except I did it because they were acting under illegal orders to abduct my daughter and me, to use us as hostages. I used up my nonlethal gear in a warning, and the next time they were coming in to shoot me first. It was self-defense, and I will testify in court for that.

"As for the rest, the files I just loaded onto the internet contain everything the Avengers have collected about the organization we have labeled the Appendix, lacking a better name. Our theories and supporting evidence on where the 'Appendix' came from, and their goals. Details about a much greater threat to our world, named Thanos. This includes how we suspect Thanos was connected with both Loki and Ultron. Records of political manipulation, and dozens of assassinations. And this is not idle speculation, it is from the Appendix's own records from their original home base that we seized. The Avengers had originally planned a timed public release of the information while working with the authorities, to help people adjust to the news. By this point however, this has all gone too far.

"The files will also detail a new superhero team that has been formed: the Future Foundation.

"They will answer every question, and then some."

A few more flicks of her fingers, and it was done.

"For a superspy, you sure enjoy posting secrets online," Talbot dryly said.

Black Widow shrugged with casual disinterest.

"Congratulations, Black Widow."

Despite her total surprise, the Avenger managed to appear calm and composed as she turned to address the 'corpse.' "You're doing rather well for a dead man, King T'Challa. What with the snapped neck and all."

Lying facedo—uhm, _chest_ down, with his face staring straight upwards at an uncomfortable –and supposedly fatal— 180 degree angle, Black Panther made a painful chuckle. "My suit is the best that Wakanda can create. Life support is keeping me alive without issue."

"Your medical science is truly impressive," Black Widow coolly agreed, even as she knew Bruce would already be eagerly yet politely asking to examine that suit to see how it was projecting such an image to create a gruesome ruse. "Pity you don't share it with the rest of the world."

"You would merely weaponise it," he said as an iron fact.

She laughed. It was short, and a flawless imitation of one, since Black Widow knew mockery was something he was less used to. Crude swearing or denials were what he would expect from an 'outsider.'

Then her gaze hardened as she knelt down to look him closer in the eye. "How do you expect the world to change, if they don't see proof of people working to make it better?"

Straightening up, she added as an afterthought. "And it should be clear to you by now that we're going to need lots and lots of new weapons for what is to come, if Loki and Ultron were merely expendable pawns of Thanos."

"Your ability to play a crowd is indeed impressive," Black Panther accused, and members of their audience did indeed show surprise as they realized she was very likely doing that.

Rolling her shoulders in a shrug, Black Widow started to walk away. "And yet you haven't denied what I've said is true."

Then Black Widow made clear the conversation was finished as she turned to other concerns. A glance at Sif showed that a female soldier was covering her with a long coat –the Asgardian's naked body had been fortunately placed so that none of the various cameras had compromised her dignity— to cover her up. There were a few mild burns present from when the Cyber Widow had burnt Sif's original clothes off, yet nothing serious.

Black Widow grabbed a certain syringe from her belt, and without any hesitation slammed the injection down into Steve Rogers' heart. Standing back, she held up one hand to count down with her fingers to reassure the crowd and soldiers, and sure enough after five seconds he was flailing his arms and legs about as he regained conscious. "Sorry about that," she apologized to them for the surprise. It was even half-sincere.

"Ugh, what happened?" Captain America groaned, blinking as he took in the sight of her with his Shield still, and the…corpse of the Cyber Widow behind her.

"I came, I saw, and I avenged," Natasha quipped. "Then I used a powerful stimulant on you. Only one I had unfortunately."

"Good for you," Steve smiled back, awkwardly standing up. "Help get these people to safety," she instructed him, "you're still wounded." He looked like he was about to protest, but then he stumbled as he remembered his right foot was missing some toes and other components right now, as well as the two bullets in either arm.

Barring his teeth as he hissed in pain, he almost fell back if not for a SEAL officer moving forward to support him. "We've got you sir." It was only then the leader of the Avengers fully processed the situation.

"Remind me to pack more stimulants next time," Black Widow said as she prepared to head out, and since Steve said nothing about his Shield, she was keeping it—it was not like he could use it properly right now.

"I'll help keep everyone safe," Captain America promised, taking up that mantle even when bloody and in civilian clothes. His natural leadership and charisma manifesting itself as he was already unconsciously getting everyone together and back on track to getting away from the ongoing battle.

Dimly they could all hear sounds of ongoing violence, and knew this crisis was still far from over.

Approaching General Talbot, Black Widow gave him a serious look. "General, do you have a squad you could lend me for support? The ringleaders are escaping on foot."

He returned the gesture, and waved up another squad of SEALs. "Sounds good. Anything we should know?"

Pointedly drawing one of her pistols to check if a round was chambered (she already knew one was), Black Widow declared, "The scientist who made _that_ ," –looking at the cooling remains of the Cyber Widow— "dies. He's had a second chance at redemption twice since we learnt about him, and this time he's risked the entirety of Las Vegas for what he did to Fenrir. And he's too brilliant and too insane for any prison to hold him. I'm putting him out of his misery, and ours."

Everyone was looking at her in shock, and then Talbot grimly jerked his head in agreement. "You're right. I believe in due process as much as anyone, but he's like Ultron at this point, beyond the point of reason, and far too dangerous. Even if we did imprison him, too many people like HYDRA will try and use him to make something worse. What about the second one?"

"He's guilty of killing the previous King of Wakanda," Natasha smiled. "I do believe they'll want to extradite him to express their displeasure."

"With trade negotiations being the price for us to receive justice," King T'Challa growled, making Captain America snap around despite the pain to look at the man, shocked to discover he was still alive.

"Oh, don't get your head out of sorts," Black Widow teased. "I'm sure that the Joint Terrorism Task Force will be willing to hand him over. So long as they have witnesses to ensure he gets a fair trial, and his fate is confirmed. No strings attached."

"None of which you can guarantee. You're still a wanted criminal, regardless of what you assume your release of the Appendix's files will result in."

"Your Majesty," Talbot butted in before this could go on any further. "Might we discuss this later? Can you contact your embassy to let them know your condition?"

Black Panther stiffly answered, "I already have."

"Good." Then both men turned to talk to Black Widow again, only to discover she was heading out at a brisk pace, almost out of ear shot with the squad of SEALs hustling to keep up with her.

Then a massive sound that every native Las Vegas member recognized as a collapsing building split the air, making them flinch.

They paled as they heard the angry roar of wrath of the mightiest Avenger.

 _That_ sound was familiar to them as well.

"What about the Hulk!?" Talbot yelled after Black Widow.

"My husband can take care of himself. He'll keep you safe while I deal with this other nuisance," she gaily called back, discretely catching a picture of the shocked faces.

 _And now to track down a certain widower…_

 **XXX**

 **Author Notes:**

 **I did this fight scene ages ago, with a few changes along the way. After all, once I had created the 'Ultimate Assassin,' I had to figure out how the blazes Natasha was to believably win.**

 **Finally saw Thor 3, and while DEFINITELY different from my version of Ragnorak. Still immensely enjoyable for me.**

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 **Next Chapter: Ragnarok Part 4: Monster vs. Monster**

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 **Please Review, and I will get back to you!**


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